Green Dragon: The New Album
by Marci
Summary: -Complete-Finally-Now that Bulma and the gang are permanently part of the Green Dragon's lives, how can Bulma tell her new boyfriend Vegeta that she's pregnant? The sequel to "Green Dragon" will have you on the edge of your seat 'til the very end. RR & en
1. Let The Games Begin

Well hello everyone! :) Marci here. I hope you all were anticipating reading this sequel just as much as I was anticipating writing it. I had a really good time writing Green Dragon, so I think the sequel will be just as good. I have a lot of stuff planned already and I hope you all like it as much as the original.  
  
Well, enough jabbering…  
  
ENJOY!!!!  
  
ooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooo  
  
Bulma Briefs sighed happily, as she got comfortable on her bed and turned on the radio. Five minutes ago she got off the phone with her boyfriend Vegeta Ouji, who was in the world famous band Green Dragon. It had only been a week and a half since she'd seen him, but she missed him terribly. Luckily, he had good news when he called; Green Dragon had a day without a concert, and their manager was allowing them to stop in Satan City. In three days she would be with him, the only person who had been able to steal her heart.  
  
To her right, the radio started to play a fancy melody, and, being in a lovey mood, Bulma decided to listen.  
  
"You've found hope. You've found faith, found how fast he could take it away. Found true love, lost your heart. Now you don't know who you are…He made it easy, made it free, made you hurt 'til you couldn't see. Sometimes it stops, sometimes it flows, but baby that is how love goes…"  
  
"Hey, this song isn't that bad," she said aloud, using her remote to turn up the volume.  
  
"You will fly and you will crawl; Kami knows even angels fall. No such thing as you lost it all. Kami knows even angels fall…It's a secret no one tells; one day it's heaven, one day it's hell. It's no fairy tale; take it from me, that's the way it's supposed to be…You will fly and you will crawl; Kami knows even angels fall. No such thing as you lost it all. Kami knows even angels fall…You laugh, you cry, no one knows why. Behold the thrill of it all...You're on the ride you might as well open your eyes…You will fly and you will crawl; Kami knows even angels fall. No such thing as you lost it all. Kami knows even angels fall…Even angels fall…Even angels fall…"  
  
As the song finished, Bulma couldn't help but smile. There was no way she could ever relate to it.  
  
ooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooo  
  
Vegeta looked down at her and smirked. She was gorgeous. Big blue eyes, long legs, the perfect white smile. He was almost shaking with anticipation, marveling silently at her smooth skin and fiery eyes. How long had it been?  
  
She wanted him just as much as he wanted her.  
  
"Vegeta," she whispered, capturing his earlobe between her teeth. A shiver ran down his spine. He took it as arousal, but in the back of his mind he knew it was something else.  
  
ooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooo  
  
Bulma held herself around the stomach and sank to the floor, crying out as if she were in pain. Her closest friends, Krillin Roshi, Chi-Chi Mau, and Maris Idane, could only stand back and watch. There was nothing they could say or do to stop her tears, though they also feared her somewhat when she was this emotional.  
  
After fifteen minutes, Bulma picked herself up off the floor and wiped her eyes.  
  
"Sorry," she sighed, giving her friends an apologetic look. "I lost my head." But inside she was still screaming.  
  
"Bulma," Chi-Chi said, cautiously walking towards her. She wrapped an arm around her shoulders. "We didn't expect anything less. Sorry we had to do that."  
  
"You know I would have wanted to know no matter what. It's just…" She trailed off and shook her head, wanting to cry again, but knowing there were no tears left. "Forget it. I don't have the energy to talk about this right now."  
  
They all nodded in unison.  
  
"We're here for you, B," Krillin said, giving her a quick kiss on the cheek.  
  
"Thanks. I'm going to hide out in my lab for a while though. I'll call you guys when I'm ready to talk."  
  
"Anything you need?" Maris offered. "Water? Iced tea? A hit man?"  
  
Bulma laughed for the first time that day and shook her head. "I'm fine. Really. I promise I'll call as soon as I'm up for conversation. Right now I just need to—"  
  
"Be alone?"  
  
"Yeah…"  
  
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18 Gero was clad in a black pinstripe suit, skin-tone pantyhose, and sharp black stilettos. Over her clear blue eyes she wore black rimmed glasses, though the lens were only pieces of plain plastic. It was all about the look, and today she needed to look professional.  
  
As she walked down the sidewalk towards her destination, she received several howls and catcalls from passersby. It wasn't until she had a block to go that someone recognized her as the drummer from Green Dragon. She rolled her eyes as twenty-plus people came rushing at her from all sides, each yelling something different, though all giving her an enormous headache.  
  
"Please," she finally said, catching their attention. "I'm late for an appointment. If you really need to talk to me, wait until I'm done."  
  
"When will you be done?" asked a girl who couldn't have been older than thirteen. Her hair was beached blonde, and by the tint of her blue eyes, 18 could tell she was wearing contacts. She wore ripped jeans and an old Ramones t-shirt.  
  
18 sighed. Another look-a-like.  
  
"An hour at most."  
  
After a few minutes, the crowd around her dispersed and allowed her to continue on her way, though they followed her every step. By the time she reached her destination, Jun Tsuruga, aka The Boss, was standing outside, her face scrunched in anger.  
  
"This better be worth my time, Gero," she sighed, turning to go into the building. "Because I have a certain back-stabbing lead singer to fry."  
  
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"Goku!" Chi-Chi cried, running across the driveway to meet him. He scooped her into his arms and whisked her off the ground, kissing her lips firmly before setting her back down. It had only been two weeks since they'd seen each other, but to them it felt like a lifetime. "Kami I missed you!"  
  
Beside them 17 Gero and Maris were embracing each other just as passionately. Krillin stood back and watched with a sad smile on his lips. It would be another two weeks before he saw 18, for she had an urgent meeting with Jun today, and by the time she was finished, Green Dragon would be on the ground again.  
  
"Me too," Goku Son sighed, kissing her face wildly. "I wish it could be longer. An hour seems so short."  
  
"I know," she agreed. "But at least we have it at all."  
  
"Where's Bulma?" 17 suddenly asked, noting that while 18 was gone Krillin was still here, but Bulma was nowhere in sight.  
  
"Her lab," Maris said, bowing her head. "We called her this morning, but her mom said she wasn't coming. It's just too much for her, what with the baby and all. She needs some time to calm down and clear her head…Where's Vegeta?"  
  
"His house. His mother talked him into visiting, but she told me she's going to pound some sense into him. To tell you the truth, I want to too. This is beyond anything he's done before."  
  
"I know," Maris sighed. "But what do you expect? It's Vegeta."  
  
"I don't know," Goku said. "Remember that day he talked to me in the hospital?" Everyone's ears perked. After all this time, they were finally going to know what that had all been about. "Well, he just ranted on for an hour about how he couldn't get Bulma out of his head, and that it was affecting his concentration, and he could barely write a song without wanting to put her in it. He did everything but confess his undying love for her, though I think that's what the jist of the conversation was, so I don't understand this at all. Maybe when everything is cooled down he'll let me talk to him. Who knows…I just hope he can fix everything before its too late."  
  
"Too late?" Chi-Chi hissed, almost angry at him for even thinking it. "I think it's well beyond that."  
  
"Ok, ok. Sorry. Let's go get a bite to eat and forget about it for awhile."  
  
oooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooo  
  
Jun sat rigidly at her desk, twiddling her pencil in annoyance. She was not in the mood for Green Dragon drama today, but of course that's all she got. They were lucky she agreed to let them stop in Satan City before moving north.  
  
"You know why I'm here," 18 said after a long silence.  
  
"Of course I do. You're here for the same reason you always are, to cover for your stupid band mate."  
  
"He's my friend," she corrected, narrowing her eyes. "And I would appreciate it if you didn't get so hostile with me. I'm not trying to provoke you."  
  
"Sorry," she sighed, dropping the pencil. "But you have no idea how much stress I've been under for the past two months. I'm really worried about how well Meiji is adjusting."  
  
"How did he take the move?"  
  
"Well," she said. "But I don't know how he feels about having a sister. He won't hold her, and he'll barely look at Akio."  
  
"I think he just needs time to adjust." 18 took a deep breath and re-thought her angle for the hundredth time. She prayed to Kami that it would work. "Look, I really want to get this over and done with, ok?"  
  
"As much as I do," Jun said, pulling her business tone back to the surface.  
  
"I know Vegeta could have just potentially screwed us over."  
  
"Potentially? 18, do you have any idea what will happen to Green Dragon if this got out? It isn't like Goku and Chi-Chi, you'd be ruined. Fans can't forget something like this."  
  
"I know," she sighed, hanging her head just a little. "The reason I wanted to talk to you is because I want to have responsibility over Vegeta."  
  
Jun blinked hard. "What?"  
  
"I want responsibility over Vegeta. For everything he does, I'll be held responsible for it. I'll be his guardian on tour and at home. You won't have to worry about him or the media, because I'll be his spokesperson."  
  
Jun sat in silence for the longest time, then shook her head.  
  
"You're crazy, Gero. There's no way he'd agree to it."  
  
"He already did." She pulled a slip of paper from her briefcase and handed it to Jun. "See. He signed himself over to me, more or less. If you sign it, I will have responsibility over him. You won't have to deal with another reporter again. I plan to go public with our arrangement, and anyone who wants to know about Vegeta will have to come to me first, not you."  
  
"You're digging your own grave," Jun sighed, picking up a pen and quickly jotting her name. "I just hope you know what you're doing."  
  
"I do. There's no way this will reach the media, I've already talked to Bulma. She's agreed to make a statement to a Tokyo magazine."  
  
Jun's composure faltered. "What kind of statement?"  
  
"The harmless kind," 18 laughed, though anyone with eyes could see the pain her voice held. "Don't worry, no one will know she's pregnant until she begins to show, and by then Vegeta won't even be on their minds."  
  
"How won't he? He'll be the first person the media fingers."  
  
"Not if we put another guy next to her."  
  
"I don't follow you."  
  
"Just let me handle it, ok?" She stood to leave, though at the last minute reached once again into her briefcase and produced another single piece of paper. "I have a copy. You can have that one."  
  
Before Jun could say a word, 18 was out the door, fully prepared to handle any unruly fans that happened to be left outside.  
  
Jun sat back in her chair and stared at the paper in her hands, completely blown away by the simplicity of the solution 18 and Bulma had come up with. It was the statement Bulma planned to submit to the magazine, which read, "I know my relationship with Vegeta seemed perfect on the outside, but in truth we were a mess. Our personalities clashed and so we broke it off. But I don't want Green Dragon fans to be upset, we ended on great terms and will remain friends."  
  
"Great terms my ass," Jun murmured, setting the paper on her desk. "I just hope everyone buys it."  
  
oooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooo  
  
Goku, Chi-Chi, Maris, 17, and Krillin all sat in a booth at the local pizza shop, talking in circles about nothing at all. Everyone was itching to bring up the subject of Bulma and Vegeta, but no one dared. They were about to leave, when a familiar face came walking towards them. Krillin was the first out of his seat, crawling over 17 and Maris to get out.  
  
"18," he sighed, wrapping his arms around her. "I thought—"  
  
"It didn't take as long as I imagined," she said, capturing his lips with hers. "I missed you cueball."  
  
He blushed furiously, then took her hand and led her to the booth.  
  
"So," Goku said, "did she accept?"  
  
"Yup," 18 beamed, pulling out the contract to show them. "She didn't really think twice about it. She's been wanting to pawn him off for years. I should have thought of this sooner."  
  
"And the baby?" Chi-Chi asked nervously.  
  
"Don't worry. I talked to her about it before I went today. She promised to keep her lips sealed."  
  
"Even—"  
  
"Especially to Vegeta. You know what Bulma said, she wants to be the one to tell him."  
  
"I just hope she tells him soon," Maris sighed. "I can't imagine what he'd do if he saw she was pregnant before he knew."  
  
"Well it serves him right if that does happen," Chi-Chi said. "He's going to hell for sure."  
  
"Come on, hun, don't be so hard on the guy."  
  
Chi-Chi's eyes immediately narrowed and her head snapped in his direction. "I will tell that asshole exactly what I think about him to his face," she hissed. "No one hurts my friends and gets away with it."  
  
For the remainder of their time together, there was a heavy cloud over the group. And Goku wondered if it would ever completely go away.  
  
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---Chapter 1! Yay! I know, I know. It sounds an awfully lot like Falling For The Neighbor Boy, but I assure you, it is NOT. You'll see that I've done things completely differently. Trust in me!!  
  
REVIEW!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! (Reviews=More Chapters) And less bodily harm…  
  
Next time: Maybe I'll explain a little more about what the hell is going on :P And it'll be much longer.  
  
Note: The song I used in this chapter was "Even Angels Fall" by: Jessica Riddle…Don't sue me! :P (Of course I changed it a little to fit the story) 


	2. Beaten But Not Broken

Last time:  
  
Chi-Chi's eyes immediately narrowed and her head snapped in his direction. "I will tell that asshole exactly what I think about him to his face," she hissed. "No one hurts my friends and gets away with it."  
  
For the remainder of their time together, there was a heavy cloud over the group. And Goku wondered if it would ever completely go away.  
  
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Bulma sighed deeply and set down the project she was working on, which to an untrained eye would look like a hunk of metal with wires sticking out of it. In truth, she really didn't think much of it either. It was only busy work, something to keep her mind focused. All projects for Capsule Corp. were either too easy or not ready to even write up blue prints for, so she made her own projects. And, as she stared at the three she'd already completed, she knew she couldn't hide out in her lab forever.  
  
The phone ringing on her desk brought her mind back to reality, and she stood and went to answer it. Only a few people had the private number to her lab.  
  
"Hello?" She wiped her face quickly with a rag, replacing the sweat with grease. Oh well, she was headed for the shower soon anyway.  
  
"Hey B," came Chi-Chi's voice. "Are you almost ready?"  
  
The question caught her off guard. She raked her mind and let out a silent gasp. A few days ago she promised Chi-Chi she'd go to the doctor with her, seeing as she was going to be two months pregnant, and Chi-Chi was pushing three.  
  
"Yeah," Bulma said after a short pause. "I just need to take a quick shower. I won't be more than ten minutes tops."  
  
"Sometimes I'm glad you're a tomboy," Chi-Chi laughed. "I'll be there in fifteen."  
  
As she hung up the phone, the calendar on her desk caught her eye. Yesterday she was two months pregnant exactly. Two months ago she was with Vegeta, she was happy, she didn't have to scrap for a reason to get out of bed in the morning. And now…  
  
"I don't even want to think about now," she said, tossing the rag on her desk and heading off to get ready.  
  
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"Well Miss Briefs," Dr. Kito said. "Everything on the outside looks fine. What'd you say we take a peek at the baby?"  
  
Bulma felt her heart shudder. Up until now she'd avoided getting a sonogram, but after witnessing Chi-Chi's tiny baby floating on the gray screen, she couldn't deny what she wanted. The moment was far from perfect, but she'd waited long enough.  
  
A few minutes later she was positioned and ready for the sonogram, her legs perched uncomfortably on the spider-leg contraptions sticking out of the bed. When the end of the machine touch her stomach she flinched involuntarily, then gasped as her eyes focused on a small oval lump on the screen.  
  
"Th-That's my baby," she whispered, reaching out to touch the monitor. Chi-Chi, who had been at her side the whole time, helped her lean forward. It was the exact same way she'd reacted the first time she and Goku came in.  
  
"And that's the heartbeat," the doctor said, referring to the sound the machine was issuing.  
  
Bulma's eyes began to water and she sat back. That was her baby. Her son or daughter, a tiny knot of cells. Her own flesh and blood.  
  
And Vegeta's…  
  
ooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooo  
  
Vegeta sat rigidly in a chair across the room from the others. The concert was supposed to start in less than an hour, and still he hadn't moved. By now they had everything all settled and there were no loose strings to tie up. But over the past hour and a half, there had been nothing but loose strings. A week ago he'd walked off stage halfway through the set and refused to come back out. The audience thought it was just part of the show, that is until an hour passed and he still wasn't back.  
  
"Don't look at me like that," he snapped, as 17's gaze drifted towards him. "You think I care what you think about me?"  
  
"You should," 18 said, stepping in front of her brother. "Even Jun never thought you'd sink that low."  
  
"Shut up, priss. I told you exactly what my intentions were. If you were so worried about her you should have warned her. Hell, she's the damn genius. She should have known herself."  
  
"Bite your fucking tongue before I rip it out," came an angry voice from behind the twins. Everyone's eyes fell on Goku in astonishment. He was never like that unless he was boarder-line psycho angry. Which had only happened once since they all knew each other. "I'm sick of your passive attitude about this and everything else that should matter! Your father is crying in Other World, wondering what the hell happened to his only child. If he were still alive he'd be ashamed to even look at you! Hell, I'm ashamed to say you're part of Green Dragon. So shut the fuck up unless you want to find a new career."  
  
"I especially don't care what you think," Vegeta said monotone, as if the mood in the room had never changed.  
  
"Then maybe you'd care what you thought five months ago in that hospital room!"  
  
Vegeta stiffened noticeably in his seat. He wouldn't.  
  
"What? You think they don't know? After you fucked yourself over I didn't see a reason to keep it to myself."  
  
"You're a sorry excuse for a friend," Vegeta hissed, gripping the armrests to keep himself in place.  
  
"And you're a sorry excuse for a human being. I'm having a hard time keeping my lunch down around you."  
  
"And since when have my actions ever surprised any of you?"  
  
No one answered.  
  
"You think that just because I got a little closer to her that she mattered more? She was a fucking challenge, Kakarot. That's all. Even she told me herself that she knew that's all she was. And she fell for poetry, of all things. I really had a lot more faith in her than that."  
  
"You're disgusting," 17 spat, sharpening his glare.  
  
"Why? Because you guys knew her too? Because you're still friends with her? Because Goku knocked up her best friend? What about Aimee? You were all friends with her too, and where is she now?"  
  
His questions were met with silence.  
  
"Exactly. She's no different from any of the others."  
  
"She—" Goku began, but stopped himself just in time and stormed out of the room. 17 and 18 followed suit, knowing exactly what he was going to say and wanting just as badly to say it.  
  
ooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooo  
  
"I don't trust either of them," 17 said, as he sat nervously on the porch of the café. Across from him Maris and 18 nodded.  
  
"Is there any way this could have been avoided?" Maris asked, looking to 18, who hadn't touched her tea.  
  
"No," 18 sighed. "If we want the band to stay together it has to be done. Besides, I think enough time has passed. Its now or never."  
  
"And he still has no idea?"  
  
"None."  
  
ooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooo  
  
Bulma walked quickly across the street so not to hold up traffic. She would have much rather walked slower than a snail, but 18 was right, she had to endure this for the sake of her new friends. As she passed the café 18 smiled and nodded her head in encouragement. Further down the road stood a shifty man with a lump under his coat. Bulma pretended not to see the man and kept on walking until she reached her destination.  
  
"Hello Miss," a man greeted as she stepped through the doorway of the restaurant. "May I take your name?"  
  
"Bulma Briefs," she said, her voice noticeably hoarse. "The reservation is under Ouji."  
  
"Yes, very well. The other party is already here. Your table in on the terrace."  
  
Bulma nodded and followed the waiter through a sea of people until they were outside again, this time on the right of the building, where the man with the lumpy coat could be seen perfectly. As they approached the table, however, the man disappeared from her mind, and she felt her throat tighten and her eyes harden.  
  
"Your table Miss." The waiter gestured to the occupied table and pulled out her chair. She thanked him and sat down, immediately ordering a glass of water.  
  
On the other side of the table Vegeta smirked.  
  
"I didn't think you'd show," he said when the waiter was gone. "You have balls Briefs."  
  
"At least someone at this table does," she hissed back, and grabbed the menu to bury her face in. Two seconds in his presence and already her face was red with anger. She took several deep breaths and set the menu back down. She had to get through this for their sake. "So, how's the tour? I haven't heard a word about it since you left."  
  
"You'd make a good actress, woman," Vegeta teased. "But the tour is good, not that you care. It always is. As long as I can make screaming teenager girls wet the tours will always be great."  
  
Bulma wrinkled her nose at his boorishness, then forced a smile.  
  
"There's so much I want to tell you, Vegeta. The things I know would crush that inflated ego of yours."  
  
"Then tell me. I'd love to see you try."  
  
"What? And lose all the fun of telling you when you're on top of the world? Forget it. I'll know when the time is right, and then I can see you squirm."  
  
"Kiss me," he said out of nowhere, his eyes fixed on hers. For a split second her heart fluttered, but then she remembered who she was sitting across from.  
  
"Did you hit your head?"  
  
"Just kiss me. Mr. Cameraman doesn't believe our acting is real."  
  
Bulma glanced over her shoulder at the man who'd had the lump in his jacket. He was wielding a camera now, and just behind it she could see he was frowning.  
  
"We're broken up to the public, Vegeta. A kiss would do us no good."  
  
"I'm not asking you to jump me and lick my face. Get up to go to the bathroom and kiss me on the cheek."  
  
"If you think—" But just as she began, out of the corner of her eye she saw the cameraman lower his camera and scowl. Another few seconds and he would leave. All of 18's hard work and planning would be for nothing. Bulma would have had to meet with Vegeta for nothing. "You're lucky I love my friends."  
  
Gracefully she stood and took a few short steps towards Vegeta. Immediately the man lifted the camera and clicked away like mad.  
  
Bulma leaned in and placed a small kiss on Vegeta's cheek, then whispered calmly in his ear before leaving. "As Kami is my witness I will make you suffer. Enjoy the peace while it lasts."  
  
ooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooo  
  
"That was revolting!" Bulma yelled, slamming her hands on the dashboard. 18, who was driving, nearly stopped the car. "Never make me do something like that again!"  
  
"Don't worry," 17 said from the backseat, placing a friendly hand on her shoulder. "It's over."  
  
"Did you see what he made me do!?"  
  
"He was trying to be in control," 18 said, keeping her eyes on the road as they drew closer to Capsule Corp. "He knew that because we set up the meeting we had the control. If he was going to get through it he needed to think he had some too."  
  
"Get through it?" Bulma snapped. "Am I that repulsive?"  
  
"Bulma, stop. You knew who he was when you went out with him."  
  
"'You knew what I was when you picked me up,'" she mocked, crossing her arms over her chest.  
  
"You can be a real bitch sometimes, you know that?"  
  
"And what? Sending me into the snake pit with that asshole didn't register on the bitch scale?"  
  
"Bulma!" 18 pulled the car up to the curb to avoid an accident in her anger. "You know I had no choice! If there was any way around this situation I wouldn't hesitate, but there isn't. I'm sorry…"  
  
"I know," Bulma sighed, hanging her head. "I'm sorry too. It's just—"  
  
"I know. You and fifty other women."  
  
ooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooo  
  
Bulma sunk low into the couch cushions and grabbed up the remote as if she were racing someone for it. Behind her Mrs. Briefs entered the room quietly and took a seat beside her daughter, a girl becoming a woman before her very eyes.  
  
"What's on?" Mrs. Briefs asked, as if she thought Bulma would fall for the idle small talk.  
  
"Mindless bullshit to rot our minds," Bulma replied and dropped the remote. "I think I'll go finish up a project before bed." But, just before she was out of her seat, her mother pulled her back down and into a powerful hug. As if rehearsed, Bulma burst into tears and clung to her mother's shoulder, her entire frame shuddering with sobs.  
  
"I'm here," she whispered, stroking her daughter's aqua locks. "I know you don't want to talk to your friends, but I thought maybe I would give it a shot. If nothing else then you know I care."  
  
"Of course I know you care," Bulma sighed. She pulled back and wiped her eyes, though it did nothing to stop the tears. "I just…Well, I guess you're right. But I don't know what to say. What do I say?"  
  
"What're you thinking?"  
  
"That I screwed up the rest of my life for a guy that only pretended to care about me for the sake of some stupid challenge. I—" But the words fell hard from her lips as the sobbing returned, and once again Bulma was being cradled by her mother. "How could I be so stupid?" she whimpered, her tight grip almost painful.  
  
"Your heart is never wrong," Mrs. Briefs whispered, as if it were a known fact, knowledge that all people are born with. "I know it sounds cheesy, but its true…And you weren't stupid."  
  
"I wasn't stupid?" Bulma leaned back as though she'd been hit in the face. "I'm pregnant mother! He used me and now I'm pregnant. How much stupider can I be?"  
  
"He's lost, sweetheart. Somewhere in his mind hurting people makes his hurt bearable."  
  
"He doesn't know the meaning of hurt," Bulma seethed. Her teeth were clenched so tight that, if she'd been paying attention to anything but her anger, she would have thought they would break under the pressure. "I trusted him completely and not a month and a half later he's in bed with some hussy he's never met!"  
  
"I know, sweety, I know," Mrs. Briefs said, trying her best to keep calm. On one side was her daughter who had been hurt in the worst of ways, and on the other was Vegeta, a boy who Mrs. Briefs wanted to have complete faith in. Somehow she was going to prove to everyone that he was a good person under his rock hard façade. Until then, however, she had a weeping daughter to attend to.  
  
"But you want to know the worst part?"  
  
Her mother was silent. She knew she needed to blow off some steam after keeping most of her hurt bottled up for the past two months.  
  
"After I found out he called me to make sure I knew what he'd done. He actually had the nerve to dial my number and speak to me after his lips had touched another woman. And do you know what he said?"  
  
Mrs. Briefs shook her head for the sake of conversation.  
  
"'You're mine. I win.' Oh, but he doesn't know the game isn't over yet."  
  
"Bulma, sweety, calm down."  
  
"Calm down!?" Bulma snapped, jumping to her feet. "That's the last thing I need to do right now. Calm down? Don't waste your breath with stupid commands like that. He doesn't know what he's gotten himself into. He might have hurt me once, but I'll recover. When I'm done with him he won't be man enough to even think about recovering."  
  
"Bulma! Please!" Mrs. Briefs yelled, suddenly on her feet as well. "Listen to yourself!"  
  
Immediately Bulma dropped to her knees and buried her face in her hands. Her mother knelt down beside her, hugging her beaten, yet not broken, daughter. Over time her heart would repair itself, but right now she needed to cry.  
  
"I thought I was so smart," Bulma sobbed.  
  
"Your brain has nothing to do with it."  
  
"A reasonable person would never—"  
  
"Love makes people fools, dear."  
  
"But how can I still love him?"  
  
"Because," Mrs. Briefs sighed, "somewhere in your heart you know he's hurting just as much as you are."  
  
oooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooo  
  
---Chapter 2! Yay! Wow! Look at me go, woo! :P I was a little skeptical when I started this sequel, but now I think I've got enough momentum to keep going. I know exactly where I want to go with this particular story, only I get writer's block on some of the details. I hope I'm not being too much of a downer, but I didn't like how OOC Vegeta was at the end of the last story. Something didn't settle right with me, so when I decided to do a sequel I knew they'd have to be broken up. Vegeta's still unstable as a person in my story, so a real relationship with Bulma was impossible in the few months they knew each other. The other characters are strong and stable, but Vegeta has those deep-seeded issues we all gush over when he lets the tiniest bit of emotion show (ie: when Frieza killed him, when he sacrificed himself to Buu, etc…).  
  
REVIEW!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! (Reviews=More Chapters) ready to pounce on anyone who doesn't review  
  
Next time: Bulma spends some time with Mrs. Ouji and learns a great deal about the father of her child…Oh, and Green Dragon has a press conference to discuss their tour, new CD, and the personal lives of the members.  
  
Note: DON'T WORRY! Vegeta and the rest of the band aren't going to be at each other's throats anymore. They realize that they're to blame just as much as he is because he did warn them, and they knew how he was with all women. 


	3. Press Conference

Last time:  
  
"But how can I still love him?"  
  
"Because," Mrs. Briefs sighed, "somewhere in your heart you know he's hurting just as much as you are."  
  
ooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooo  
  
"Are you sure you want to do this?" 18 asked, her arm slung loosely over his shoulder. "You know you don't have to."  
  
"There will be more problems if I don't," Vegeta said, shrugging her arm off.  
  
On the floor stood hundreds of reporters, cameras rolling, microphones on, and questions written on index cards in hand. In a few moments Green Dragon would be sitting at the table on the small stage, their eyes constantly threatened by flashing bulbs.  
  
"Ready?" came a voice from behind the band. All but Vegeta turned to face Jun, who carried a young boy with long raven black hair on her hip. They knew without being told that it was Meiji, Akio's son, Jun's adopted son. Why she brought him was beyond them, but no one questioned her actions and instead nodded. "Good. Do we need to go over anything?"  
  
Everyone's eyes immediately fell on Vegeta.  
  
"What? I know what I have to say."  
  
"Don't lose your temper, Ouji," Jun warned. "It's not only you that will burn this time. 18 takes the fall with you."  
  
"I signed the damn contract didn't I? Kami. Let's just get this over with."  
  
"Fine." Jun motioned to a man on the other wing of the stage, hidden just behind it as they were. The man nodded and stepped onto the stage, addressing the eager and slightly annoyed reporters. He told them in a few brief words that they didn't have to wait any longer, and motioned for the band to come join him. One by one Green Dragon emerged from stage left and took their respective seats at the table. Jun handed Meiji to the man as he came to her, then joined her band on stage as well. "Let me say right now that as their manager I will decide which questions they can and cannot answer. Anyone asking inappropriate questions will be shown out and asked not to return. Am I clear?"  
  
The crowd of reporters murmured that she was clear.  
  
"Oh, and please ask band related questions first. The individuals' personal lives can wait…Alright. I'll start on this side of the room," she said, pointing to their right. A young woman with short brown hair pulled her mic up and cleared her throat.  
  
"My question is for 18," the woman said. 18 nodded at the woman to show she was listening. "Being the only girl in the band, do you feel you're treated differently than the other members?"  
  
"Well," 18 said, brushing a strand of hair from her eyes. "It depends on where we are. I'm treated as an equal to the other members with everything except sex."  
  
The brown-haired woman baulked.  
  
"What I mean is that I prefer guys while my band mates prefer women."  
  
"Alright, that's enough 18," Jun said, not appreciating how she was trying to bait the reporters into asking questions that would get them thrown out of the room. The questions droned on for the next hour about everything from the success of the tour to how well they thought their new CD would hold up against other popular bands. But as the questions grew more tiresome and boring, Jun finally decided to let the reporters ask what they really wanted.  
  
"My question is for Goku," said a short man with thinning gray hair. "How is it you came across your girlfriend? Chi-Chi Mou, is it?"  
  
"Mau," Goku corrected, not being able to contain a smile at the mention of her name. "It's very interesting actually. Chi-Chi and her friends came to one of our concerts back in September. 17 happened to find them in our hotel and invited them backstage, because, let's face it, we can't keep each other company all the time." The crowd laughed appropriately.  
  
"One more thing," the older man said. "Is it true that Miss Mau's friends are now your band mates' significant others?"  
  
"Yes, that is correct. All but one."  
  
Everyone's attention turned to Vegeta who sat ready and waiting for the barrage of questions that would come his way.  
  
"Vegeta." It was the brown-haired woman again. "With your…past with women, how is it that you ended your relationship with Bulma Briefs on such good terms?"  
  
"We were too much alike," he answered truthfully. "We were better friends than…lovers. She and 18 are the only women I feel that way about…Not that they aren't both gorgeous beyond reason." Both 18 and Jun scowled in his direction, but held their tongues.  
  
"There are rumors going around that Bulma left you for another man. Is this true?"  
  
Vegeta laughed a little too loudly at the question.  
  
"No, it isn't true. Any man she's seen with she met after we broke it off."  
  
"And you didn't leave her for another woman?"  
  
"Miss, have you seen Bulma Briefs? I'd have to be insane to leave her for any reason."  
  
"Ok, ok," Jun said, grabbing the room's attention. "Just a few more questions and we're done."  
  
The room seemed to explode with energy.  
  
"And no more for Vegeta."  
  
And just as quickly the room died down and only a few reporters still had questions.  
  
"Goku," a middle-aged man asked, his greasy black hair combed back and shining. "Two months ago at the opening concert in Satan City you brought your girlfriend, Chi-Chi, on stage to tell your fans that she was pregnant."  
  
"Yes," Goku confirmed.  
  
"How pregnant was she at the time?"  
  
"One month."  
  
"So she is now three months pregnant?"  
  
"Yes, that's correct."  
  
"And your involvement—"  
  
"I am there for her and the baby one hundred percent. I love Chi-Chi with all I have and I will love our baby just as much."  
  
"Are there any plans for a wedding in the future?"  
  
"No. Not right now."  
  
The crowd murmured loudly, but no one actually dared to voice their opinion. Goku Son of Green Dragon was only eighteen years old. What type of a role model was he for the younger fans? And he was always pegged as "the good one."  
  
"I have a general question," said a petite blonde woman in the front. "How do you individually feel about teen pregnancy?"  
  
"I'd have to say it's not good, but it does happen," 17 said. "And not just to normal high school kids. Goku here is proof that even someone as wealthy and successful as him can make mistakes."  
  
18 and Goku agreed with 17's statement, though Vegeta stayed quiet. The idea of having a child, at any age, sent shivers down his spine. He didn't know how Goku could stomach the thought of it.  
  
"Vegeta?" the woman probed.  
  
"There are already enough brats in the world," he said, ignoring the heat Jun was giving off beside him. "As it is the adults are making too many children and orphanages are full. I think we need to stop breeding for awhile."  
  
"Are you saying you never want to have children?"  
  
The entire table to Vegeta's left stiffened.  
  
"If I'm ever unlucky enough to get a girl pregnant then I want someone to put me out of my misery."  
  
ooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooo  
  
"I'll put you out of your fucking misery!" Bulma hissed, throwing her remote at the TV. Vegeta's face loomed for a few more seconds, and then Jun came on and Bulma was able to tune her out. She was about to get up off her bed and turn off the TV, when the phone on her nightstand rang. "Hello?"  
  
"Hi Bulma," came a familiar voice. "Are you busy?"  
  
"No, Mrs. Ouji. I'm not."  
  
"Great. Would you like to have dinner with me tonight? I've missed you since…well…you know."  
  
"Since your son broke my heart and laughed in my face?" she almost said, but held her tongue and instead agreed to be at the Ouji residence at seven. Maybe she'd had better luck telling Mrs. Ouji about the baby.  
  
oooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooo  
  
As soon as the door opened Bulma was in Mrs. Ouji's arms, her face buried in her long black hair. After a moment the older woman released her and smiled sadly. Of course she was happy to see her, but knowing that her son had screwed up with her too was almost unbearable.  
  
In the few short months she'd known Bulma she'd become quite attached to her, and, upon hearing the news that Vegeta had cheated on her, nearly ripped her own son's head off. Their fight this time had been worse than usual. Instead of leaving him a message of apology on his cell phone after he stormed out, she fumed around the house for hours. It had been over a month since she'd seen or talked to him.  
  
"How are you, dear?" Mrs. Ouji asked as they sat in the den, a crackling fire in the fireplace. Even if spring was just around the corner, it was still dreadfully cold.  
  
"I'm doing well," Bulma said, not lying entirely. Of course she was still angry and hurt by what Vegeta did, but a part of her was over him and ready to move on. When he first started putting moves on her she knew a relationship with him would never work out. But then again, she never planned on falling in love. "How are you?"  
  
"I'm good. Just wondering how to go about disowning my son." Both women laughed freely at the joke, ignoring the anger they were both feeling at his mention.  
  
"So, where are we going for dinner?" Bulma asked.  
  
"Going? Did I say that?"  
  
"I just thought—"  
  
"I made grilled chicken pita sandwiches and broccoli soup. I hope you don't mind."  
  
"Mind? I'm coming over every night for dinner."  
  
oooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooo  
  
"I'm so sorry," Mrs. Ouji sighed, leaning against the doorframe, her face knotted with a mixture of pain and disgust. On the floor, next to the toilet bowl, Bulma looked up and shook her head.  
  
"It's not your fault," she said, bringing her hand to her mouth as she felt bile rise in her throat.  
  
"You ran to the bathroom right after you finished eating. I'd say it's my fault. I just hope that chicken wasn't bad."  
  
"It wasn't the food, I assure you." Bulma leaned over the toilet and dry-heaved, then sat back. She was done, for now.  
  
"How can you be sure?" Mrs. Ouji asked as she helped her to her feet. She then rummaged through the closet beside the sink and retrieved an unopened toothbrush, handing it to Bulma along with a tube of toothpaste. "Have you ever had food poisoning before? It's hell."  
  
"This is hell alright," Bulma laughed bitterly. "But it's not food poisoning."  
  
"So you've been sick for some time then?"  
  
Bulma shook her head as she brushed the vomit taste from her mouth.  
  
"Just this morning?"  
  
She shook her head again and spit into the sink.  
  
"Well if it's not food poisoning then I'm in the dark."  
  
"I haven't been sick, per se, but I have been intimate with my toilet for the past two months."  
  
Mrs. Ouji furrowed her brow in confusion for a moment, then gasped as she caught Bulma's meaning. Her large dark eyes widened and she took a step forward.  
  
"Bulma, you're—"  
  
"Yes."  
  
"And it's—"  
  
"Yes."  
  
"He never mentioned anything to me," she said as she eased herself onto the closed toilet seat, her hands shaking.  
  
"Well," Bulma said, "since you haven't spoken to him in some time he would have never had a chance to tell you. But that's not the reason he didn't."  
  
"What do you mean?"  
  
"He…I haven't told him yet."  
  
"Excuse me?" Mrs. Ouji's motherly tone kicked in and she rose immediately to her feet.  
  
"I'm waiting until I'm ready. Right now I'm still too pissed at him to even look at him, much less have a serious conversation."  
  
Mrs. Ouji stood in silent for what Bulma thought must have been hours. After the first few minutes she started to feel uneasy and shoved her hands in her pockets to keep from playing with them. Finally, just before Bulma was about to break the silence, Mrs. Ouji said, "Will you let him be a part of the baby's life?"  
  
"Of course. But you're assuming that he wants to be. My money's on fatherless child. No offense, but after what happened with Sen I don't expect any less. Besides, at their press conference today—"  
  
"I know. I watched it too, and I can understand why you haven't told him yet…I do hope you tell him soon though. Even if he is the reason you two are no longer together, he still deserves to know that he's going to be a father."  
  
"I know. I know. I just—Uh! I get so angry when I think about him. And I feel like such an ass right now, talking to you about your son the way I am. Not to mention how you had to find out you were going to be a grandmother."  
  
Mrs. Ouji stopped before she spoke and a small smile crept onto her lips. She was going to be a grandmother.  
  
"Don't worry about how you feel about Vegeta, dear. I feel that way about him too right now…Do you need my help telling him?"  
  
"No," Bulma said quickly. "I'm fine. I just need to cool off, that's all. If I can be in the same room as him and not want to rip my hair out then I'll be able to tell him. I just need to see him a few times with everyone else before I can feel that way."  
  
"I'm sorry that this had to happen," Mrs. Ouji sighed. "And I can't help but think that this is all my fault."  
  
"Your fault?" Bulma baulked. "How—"  
  
"Not you getting pregnant, of course. But because you and Vegeta aren't together right now."  
  
"How in Kami's name could that possibly be your fault?"  
  
"When my husband died I was so caught up in my own grief that I couldn't help Vegeta to properly get through his. He still resents me for what happened to this day. He wishes it was me and not his father that died that night…"  
  
"Don't say that," Bulma snapped, though immediately regretted her harshness. "Sorry. But really, you shouldn't say that. He loves you unconditionally. The way he turned out has nothing to do with what you did or didn't do. No matter what his father's death was going to have a traumatic impact on him…He must have been very close with him."  
  
"Very," Mrs. Ouji said, wiping at her tears before they had a chance to fall. "And for the record, I think he loves you too."  
  
Bulma was too shocked to speak.  
  
"I'm serious. When I confronted him about what he'd done to you he was so tongue-tied he could barely argue. With any other girl he was almost calm when we fought. But this time everything I said seemed to cut him really deep, and all I was saying was the truth."  
  
"Forgive me, but I just think your son is a very good actor."  
  
"That may be true," Mrs. Ouji sighed. "But I know my son, and he's never been able to fool me."  
  
oooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooo  
  
---Chapter 3! Weeee! This is fun. I'm really getting into this. And yes, there's a reason my updates aren't as frequent as before. 1. I'm extremely busy getting ready for college and trying to spend time with friends before they leave too. 2. I type out all the chapters on my laptop now and barely get on the computer that has internet (and my brothers are home a lot more and hog it). And 3. I don't want to screw up the story with crappy ideas that I just through together it two seconds. I'm really taking my time on this and I hope it all pays off in the end.  
  
REVIEW!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! (Reviews=More Chapters) YAY!  
  
Next time: Bulma and Vegeta have another encounter. Eeep! This may get ugly…  
  
Note: It's 1:00 AM people, corrections can wait :P 


	4. Just Like The Movies

Last time:  
  
"Forgive me, but I just think your son is a very good actor."  
  
"That may be true," Mrs. Ouji sighed. "But I know my son, and he's never been able to fool me."  
  
ooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooo  
  
Bulma paced nervously around her room as she waited for three o'clock to arrive. Last night she'd received a call from 18, telling her that the band had two days break before their next concert and would be passing through Satan City again to head south. They would be getting into town around three, at which point someone would call her and tell her to go to 17 and 18's house.  
  
And Vegeta was going to be there.  
  
When 18 first mentioned it Bulma had nearly thrown the phone on the floor in anger, but after much consideration and careful words on 18's part, she decided that maybe it wasn't such a bad idea. She was going to have to see him for the rest of her life, what with the baby and all, so today was as good a day as any to start. After agreeing to be in the same room as him, Bulma hung up the phone and cried herself to sleep, the idea of having to spend the rest of her life in the company of Vegeta just beginning to sink in. She wondered when it would stop hurting, when her heart would stop wanting him.  
  
She was just about to call 18's cell, when her phone rang. She jumped off the bed and jammed the receiver against her ear.  
  
"Hello?"  
  
"Hey B, it's 18. I just dropped the guys off at my house, and I'm coming to round all of you up."  
  
"Alright," Bulma said, trying to keep her voice steady. That morning she'd decided that tonight she was going to tell Vegeta about the baby. After all the conversations she'd had with everyone, it was Mrs. Ouji's a few days ago that caught her attention. She was right, even if Vegeta had hurt her he still deserved to know she was pregnant with his child.  
  
"Are you sure you can do this? I can just send Vegeta home."  
  
"No. No. Please. I'm fine. Really. He has just as much right to be there as I do. Besides, I need to get over this hating him thing. It's not healthy."  
  
"Amen to that. I guess Mrs. Ouji really talked some sense into you."  
  
"How did you—"  
  
"Did you think you were the only one she had dinner with? She's like my mom."  
  
"Oh, well, yeah. I guess you're right. She did make some good points."  
  
"Then you told her?"  
  
"She didn't tell you I did?"  
  
"She doesn't tell me everything. Obviously she respects your privacy. But hey, I'm in your driveway." Bulma heard the shrill sound of a car horn, both through the phone and at the front of the house. "Come on."  
  
She hung up the phone and trudged down the stairs. She had a very bad feeling about today.  
  
ooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooo  
  
When she walked into the twin's game/movie room, Bulma immediately took a seat next to 17, her eyes staying expertly away from Vegeta. Every impulse in her body told her to look at him, and she fought them all. He sat just across from her; the only thing separating them was a low coffee table, and she knew his eyes were on her.  
  
"So, what're we going to do?" Bulma asked 17, who smiled and pointed at the big screen TV.  
  
"Movie marathon," he answered. "The classics, of course."  
  
"Of course."  
  
"Dead Poet's Society, Bill and Ted's Bogus Journey, Clerks, Seven, and throughout the rest of the night we'll play episodes of The Munsters. I have the entire collection."  
  
"Damn," Bulma laughed, almost forgetting who was in the room with her. "Sounds like a party. Great picks."  
  
"Of course, The Munsters will probably only be background by the time we get to it. 18 and Goku are itching to play foosball and some other games with you guys."  
  
"And I thought we were just visiting for a little bit."  
  
"Hell no. You're here all night, girlie." He leaned in and gave her a quick kiss on the cheek before curling into Maris who sat on the other side of him. "And you best have a good time."  
  
oooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooo  
  
A ripple of laughter pulsed through the group as Bill and Ted did, yet again, another stupid thing. Both large couches were pulled up next to each other, with the coffee table and the TV in front of them. Empty soda cans and bowls of chips and popcorn lay on the table, and Bulma didn't even seem to mind that Vegeta sat next to her. Though for the longest time she hadn't noticed, for that's where he sat when he returned from the bathroom just before the start of the movie.  
  
"Kami," Bulma laughed, holding her stomach. "This is great. It definitely beats the first one."  
  
"How do you figure?" Goku asked from the couch beside her.  
  
"Come on. This one has Station, The Grim Reaper, and they go to hell. What doesn't make it better?"  
  
"She has a point," Vegeta said, and the room went quiet, save for the movie before them.  
  
"See," Bulma said, motioning to him. "Even HE agrees with me."  
  
The room seemed to sigh with relief and everyone continued watching the movie. But inside Bulma was crying. Everything seemed just like before, when she was completely happy and so sure of her relationship with Vegeta.  
  
For the sake of everyone else, she held her emotions in check and was determined to enjoy the rest of the night.  
  
ooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooo  
  
Bulma grabbed a bottle of birch beer from the refrigerator on the other side of the room and went to see how Goku and 18's foosball game was going. In the distance Herman Munster laughed and hit the wall so hard with his fist that a hole bigger than him appeared. Bulma giggled and sidled up next to Goku.  
  
"Who's winning?"  
  
"I am," 18 said with a sinister smirk.  
  
"By how much?"  
  
"Ten points," Goku groaned, just as she sunk another shot.  
  
"Oh, well, good game," Bulma laughed. She patted him on the back then glanced out the window. It was a full moon, and the day had been sunny enough that she figured it wouldn't be so cold outside. "Hey, I'm going to go get some fresh air for a minute. I'll be right back." Before they could answer she grabbed her coat and was gone.  
  
As she took a seat on the front steps she smiled. She'd been right, it wasn't so bad out here, especially since she had her long coat on.  
  
She took a deep breath and stared up at the moon. How many nights had she come outside after her break-up with Yamcha? So many she couldn't remember. And it seemed at times when nothing else would work, the brilliant moon and the cool night air could soothe her in the strangest way. She felt safe under the blanket of stars and thick black sky. Somehow no one could touch her as long as she could see one star and feel that refreshing light breeze.  
  
Behind her the front door opened and closed. She didn't turn around to find out who it was, and was surprised at who sat beside her.  
  
"What do you want, Vegeta?" she asked, angry that he'd bother her when she was trying to regain peace.  
  
"Same thing you want."  
  
"I doubt that."  
  
"What? I can't want fresh air?" He smirked and pulled a pack of cigarettes from his jacket pocket.  
  
"Don't smoke around me."  
  
"Why?"  
  
"Because," she sighed, wanting nothing more than to tell him he was hurting his own child, but opted for something entirely different. "I'm not dying of second-hand smoke from you."  
  
"Just from me? Or in general?"  
  
"Shut up and put it out."  
  
"I never lighted it."  
  
"Uh! Vegeta!" she snapped, looking over at him for the first time all night. "I don't need this right now, ok? I'm under a lot of stress right now. You can't even begin to imagine what I've gone through the past few months."  
  
His smirk widened into a sly grin.  
  
"Oh stop. I didn't mean crying over you, jackass."  
  
"I think you might be lying. Just a little bit."  
  
"And what makes you say that?" she retorted, knowing full well that he was more than right. At that moment she wanted nothing more than to be able to wrap herself in his arms and proclaim to the world that they were forever. "Did I cry when you called me? Did I cry at the restaurant? Am I crying now?"  
  
"It's not the crying. It's the anger. You're mad because you love me and I used you. Simple. The thing I don't understand is how you allowed yourself to be used. I told you to your face that you were a challenge, that I wanted to get in your pants and nothing more. I don't think I could have been any more blunt."  
  
"Well, I suppose you have a slight point there," Bulma admitted, her lips curling into a sneer. "I was also trying to do the impossible."  
  
"And what was that?" He couldn't imagine where she was getting at with this, though he silently congratulated her on her calmness. Of course she was short with him, but nine times out of ten everyone is that way to him.  
  
"Change you."  
  
Vegeta let out a cruel laugh, as he leaned back on his hands.  
  
"Not completely, of course."  
  
"Of course."  
  
"I think I succeeded."  
  
"I'm sorry," he laughed. "I thought I heard you say you succeeded."  
  
"I did," she said through her teeth. "And I have proof."  
  
"What proof?"  
  
"Your mother."  
  
"Right. Believe that bitch."  
  
"She told me that during your last fight you were so defensive you could barely get your words out."  
  
"My Kami. You should call the papers. You just made the discovery of the century," he mocked, completely unimpressed.  
  
"I think it's rather interesting, seeing as every other time you're calm and coherent."  
  
"That's because every other time my mother is only cared about her own image. She could care less about all the other girls I've had one night stands with. But for some reason she likes you, and that's why our last fight was so...intense. Because SHE was more intense."  
  
Bulma dropped her eyes and turned back towards the night sky. She didn't want to admit it, but what he said made perfect sense. It's not like Bulma could argue that he was wrong, for he still hadn't played the "I know my mother better than you" card.  
  
"Can I ask you one question?" she finally said.  
  
"Why not."  
  
"Why do you enjoy hurting people that haven't done anything to you?"  
  
"So you admit that I won?"  
  
"Just answer the question, dumbass."  
  
"I enjoy power," he said simply.  
  
"And you have no remorse?"  
  
"None."  
  
"Why was I a special case? Why did you spend a month and a half with me before you screwed that no-name? Why couldn't I have found you in bed with her the next day?"  
  
He was silent for a moment, then leaned forward, placing crossed arms on his knees.  
  
"I got comfortable."  
  
"What's that supposed to mean?"  
  
"It means what I said. I was comfortable."  
  
"No, I think it means that it was easier for you to screw me every night rather than work to trick some helpless girl into bed. Tell me I'm wrong."  
  
"You're right. I can't get anything past you, but neither can you."  
  
"Neither can I what?"  
  
"I know you're hiding something from me, Bulma. You try to pretend you're only angry because I could trick you, but there's more."  
  
"If you think I love you—"  
  
"I wasn't going to say that, but now that you mention it, yes. It could be possible. Though women are known to say that phrase for just about anything."  
  
"Then what do you think I'm hiding?"  
  
"I can't say. You're good. I will tell you one thing though."  
  
"And what's that?"  
  
"I don't like you spending so much time with my mother."  
  
"Great," she said with a smile as she turned to face him. "All the more reason for me to continue seeing her."  
  
"Whatever," he sighed. He stood and held out his hand to help her up.  
  
"Sorry. I don't trust you."  
  
"Fine. You know my number if you ever want to come clean." He turned to leave and just as his hand touched the doorknob Bulma stood and grabbed his arm.  
  
"There is one thing I want to say."  
  
He turned back around and crossed his arms. "I'm listening."  
  
"Vegeta, I...The thing is...I'm—"  
  
But just as the last word form, the front door opened and Goku stepped outside, stunned at what he saw before him.  
  
"Kami," he gasped, as if just catching them in bed together. "What's going on?"  
  
"Nothing," Bulma assured him, her eyes trying to signal for him to leave. "I was just about to tell Vegeta something."  
  
"Oh!" He smacked his forehead with the butt of his hand and backed up. "Sorry. I'll leave then." When the door closed Vegeta pressed his back against it so they wouldn't be interrupted again,  
  
"Now I have to hear this."  
  
"It's nothing big," she lied. "Goku's just excited to see we're not at each other's throats."  
  
"Right. Right. What were you saying?"  
  
"I just wanted to let you know that...that I'm stopping by tomorrow...I'm giving you the Anzai book back. I've already memorized it and I hate having it around, knowing that YOU gave it to me. I'll give it to your mother if you're not there."  
  
"Fine," he sighed, disappointed by her words. "Don't tell me. You know where to find me when you're ready."  
  
"Vegeta, that's what I was going to say."  
  
"Uh-huh." He opened the door, shaking his head slightly. "Well, I'm going back inside." He was almost in when he looked over his shoulder and said, "By the way, I'm sleeping in the guest room next to 17's room, just incase you're in the mood later tonight."  
  
The door was shut before Bulma could land a successful punch. She cursed him aloud, cradling her right hand as she sunk to the ground. Now she was free to cry.  
  
oooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooo  
  
"Why didn't you tell him?" Goku asked, as he pulled Bulma out of everyone's hearing range. Behind them Jun was nagging the band to hurry up and board the bus so they could reach their next destination on time. Vegeta was the only one not interested in saying good-bye, and was already on the bus with his headphones on.  
  
"I was one word away when you happened to open the door," Bulma snapped back, immediately feeling bad. "Sorry. It's not your fault. I just lost my nerve after you left."  
  
"It's fine." He pulled her into a hug. "I know how hard it must be for you."  
  
"He really does hate everyone," she sighed, holding back her tears and stepping away. "You wouldn't believe some of the things he told me last night. I hope Jun has considered therapy."  
  
"He's been to three different shrinks. He won't talk about himself and insults them constantly."  
  
"I'll be lucky if I get through this without having to see one. Our kid is going to be so messed up." She shook her head sadly, catching Jun's angry glare. "Well, you better get going. I think Jun's eyes are about to explode from too much glaring."  
  
"Alright, alright. Just call me if you need to talk, you know?"  
  
"I know," she sighed. "But I'm fine. I have Chi, and Krillin, and Maris. I'm not going to bother you. You have enough on your plate. Don't worry about me."  
  
"I will no matter what you say. You're my friend, Bulma, and I don't like seeing my friends hurt." He glanced over his shoulder at Jun. "I'll tell you what. I'll talk to Vegeta about his...problems. I'll see if somehow I can get him to open up just a little."  
  
"You're a dreamer, Goku," Bulma laughed. "But hurry up and get on that bus. And for Kami's sake, kiss Chi-Chi before you leave. She's twitching more than a Chihuahua."  
  
Goku only laughed and gave her another quick hug before going to his girlfriend to say a final good-bye. The good news was that in two months they'd be done touring. The bad news was that in two months they'd be done touring, and Bulma would have to see Vegeta more than twice a month.  
  
"What am I worried about?" she whispered as the bus drove away. "There's no way in hell he'll want to be a part of this baby's life."  
  
ooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooo  
  
---Chapter 4!! :) Aww man! And Bulma was sooo close to telling him!...Oh well, maybe next time :P Heehee. Oh I so enjoy torturing you people with this...er...I mean, I enjoy giving you a great story with so much to offer :P Heehee.  
  
REVIEW!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! (Reviews=More Chapters)  
  
Next time: 18 has a proposition for Bulma...What could it be!?  
  
P.S. Don't worry about Vegeta's horrible attitude towards Bulma. It'll all work out for the best, I promise! When have I ever let you down!? :) 


	5. Omezo

Last time:  
  
Goku only laughed and gave her another quick hug before going to his girlfriend to say a final good-bye. The good news was that in two months they'd be done touring. The bad news was that in two months they'd be done touring, and Bulma would have to see Vegeta more than twice a month.  
  
"What am I worried about?" she whispered as the bus drove away. "There's no way in hell he'll want to be a part of this baby's life."  
  
oooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooo  
  
"I see you caved," Maris said, not looking at Bulma from the passenger's seat as they drove back to Capsule Corp.  
  
"What do you mean?" Bulma asked, trying to keep her eyes on the road. Everyone was saying things like that to her lately.  
  
"Well," she sighed. "Vegeta certainly wasn't acting like someone who just found out they were going to be a father."  
  
"I tried, ok? I went outside for some fresh air and he came out too. I should have got up and went back inside, but I didn't. I stayed there, despite how angry I was and still am, and I tried to tell him." Bulma pulled the car into her driveway and killed the engine. "It's not my fault that Goku happened to come outside just as I was trying to tell him. After that I lost my nerve. You don't know how hard it is to build the courage to tell someone something like that."  
  
"Are—" Chi-Chi began, but Bulma cut her off.  
  
"You are the only exception, Chi. But still, you have to admit that telling Goku is a little easier than telling someone like Vegeta. With Goku you're guaranteed understanding. With Vegeta I'm lucky if he admits to sleeping with me."  
  
"When are you going to tell him?" Krillin butted in as he climbed out of the car. The others followed suit. "Pretty soon your belly will speak for itself."  
  
"I know, I know. I'm trying, ok? But how can I tell him when he's proud of cheating on me? How can I let my child know a father like that? What kind of a mother would I—"  
  
"Bulma dear!" came Mrs. Briefs voice from the front porch. "Telephone!"  
  
"Coming!" she called back, then turned to her friends. "Grab some food and meet me in my room, ok? We can finish this conversation there." She ran up to her mother and grabbed the phone, taking a seat on the porch. She waited for her to go inside before putting it to her ear. "Hello?"  
  
"Hey, it's me," came 18's slightly fuzzy voice. She must have been on her cellular.  
  
"Hey. What's going on? Do you want to talk to Krillin?"  
  
"No, I need to ask you something."  
  
Bulma hesitated before continuing. The last time 18 asked her something she ended up at lunch with Vegeta and a photographer. The pictures were still being printed in magazines. "About what?" she finally said.  
  
"What do you think?"  
  
"Kami," she groaned. "I'm getting sick of these little games with Vegeta. It's bad enough that my child is half his."  
  
"How do you know he's not listening to this call?"  
  
"Because, you're not a horrible person. My guess is you're in the bathroom and he's asleep somewhere far from you on the bus."  
  
"Whatever...You know how you gave that statement about you and Vegeta?"  
  
"Yes, that pack of lies," Bulma scoffed.  
  
"Well, you need to do one more thing to make the whole thing completely believable."  
  
"And what's that? Tell the press I'm pregnant with his baby before he knows?"  
  
"No," 18 sighed. Bulma frowned. She knew she was only trying to do what was best for everyone. "You need to be seen in public with another guy."  
  
"Perfect. Do you have a number I could call?"  
  
"Bulma..."  
  
"Sorry. I'll cooperate, but I don't like the idea of pretending to be dating a stranger. I mean, what's to keep him from going to the press? How—You're going to pay him off, aren't you?"  
  
"Of course," 18 laughed. "How else do we do things in this business? Well, things like this."  
  
"So how do I find a guy like that?"  
  
"I could hire—"  
  
"No thanks, 18. No offense, but the last time you tried to set me up with someone you impersonated a nurse. I think I can find a guy on my own." She paused for a moment, thinking over the situation. How had her life become so complicated in these past months? At the end of her junior year Bulma was clear-headed and focused; she knew exactly where she was going and what she needed to get there. But now, what did she have? A bastard child growing in her belly and a shattered heart. She couldn't imagine things getting any worse. "So, how much are you going to pay him?"  
  
"I think $5,000 a week will be enough for the average Joe."  
  
"Damn. I better not look in any high class places then," Bulma joked. "When do I need him by?"  
  
"The end of the week?" 18 suggested, knowing she was being outrageous.  
  
"I'll try, but under one condition."  
  
"What?"  
  
"Vegeta can't know that the guy is hired."  
  
"Excuse me?" 18 baulked. "You want us to keep more from him? Bulma, I'm sorry, but I don't see how—"  
  
"He ruined my life, 18. I think a few white lies won't hurt. Besides, once the public knows I'm pregnant won't I have to tell them it's Vegeta's baby? Then I can get rid of the pseudo boyfriend and—poof!—no more secrets."  
  
"I don't know..."  
  
"Well that's the only way I'll do it. He hurt me and this is NOTHING compared to that. He probably won't even bat an eyelash when he sees me with the guy, so what's the big deal?"  
  
"Fine," 18 agreed. "But you have to promise you'll tell him before you start to show, or I'll tell him the boyfriend is a fake."  
  
"Alright."  
  
"And I'll tell him you're pregnant before the papers can get a picture of you. And believe me, I'll know before they do. Even if I am in the U.S."  
  
"You think Krillin you sell me out?"  
  
"No. Who said anything about Krillin?"  
  
"Whatever. It doesn't matter. I'll tell him as soon as possible. In the mean time..." She trailed off, unsure she wanted to say what was on her mind.  
  
"In the mean time what?"  
  
"Look, you're the only person I'm going to admit this to, ok?" Immediately 18's ears perked. "I'm not over Vegeta and I don't think I ever will be. I was happier than I've been in so long when me and him were just friends. And I don't want our child growing up in a world where their mother hates their father. I...I want to try to reconcile with him, try to become his friend again...Am I too pathetic?"  
  
"Oh B," 18 sighed, a hint of a laugh behind her voice. "No, not at all. I agree with you, you should make peace with him before the baby comes. No child deserves to be surrounded by pain and hate. You don't want him or her ending up like their father."  
  
"Yeah," Bulma laughed, making light of her situation for the first time.  
  
"Ok, well I better get going. 17 and Goku wanted to discuss some tour stuff. Call me when you find a guy, ok?"  
  
"Alright. It probably won't be for about a week though, seeing as I have school."  
  
"I understand...Hey, let's say you go out Friday night and find a guy. Then Saturday you could maybe drive out to Hensi where our concert is and meet up with Vegeta. I mean, you did want to start mending bridges as soon as possible."  
  
"Yeah, yeah," Bulma sighed. "I'll see if the gang will let me ditch out on Saturday cartoons."  
  
"I'm sure they'll understand."  
  
"I know. That's what I'm afraid of."  
  
"Bulma." Suddenly 18's tone was very serious. "Somewhere deep inside him I think Vegeta misses you, maybe even loves you. He hasn't exactly been himself since you broke up...The other night he woke me up mumbling in his sleep, and I think he said your name."  
  
"18—"  
  
"I'm just putting it out there. Call me Saturday, ok?"  
  
"Yes. I promise. Good luck in Borgo and Hensi."  
  
"Thanks. Bye B."  
  
"Bye."  
  
"What was that all about?" came a familiar voice. Bulma looked up and smiled.  
  
"Hey Yamcha. What brings you here?"  
  
"We haven't hung out in awhile. Thought I'd swing by and see how you were."  
  
"I'm fine."  
  
Yamcha raised a questioning eyebrow.  
  
"I'll be fine...soon. But hey, the guys are upstairs. We were kind of in the middle of an important discussion—"  
  
"Oh, that's fine. We can do something some other time."  
  
"Actually, I think you should come up. There's something I've been meaning to tell you."  
  
oooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooo  
  
Bulma walked the length of her lab towards Vegeta, her face, arms, and clothes covered in grease, and her ponytail high and frizzy. She wore a pair of baggy denim overalls and a plain gray t-shirt, with grungy old blue tennis shoes.  
  
"I thought we were going at seven," she said when she stopped a foot in front of him. "Its only five-something. I still have some stuff to finish up down here."  
  
"I'll wait," he replied, closing the gab between them, his arms snaking around her slim waist. But before their lips met, Bulma pulled back. "What?"  
  
"I'm a mess, Vegeta. There's no use getting you all messy too." She turned from him, motioning for him to follow her to her workstation. "Besides, there's plenty of him for THAT later."  
  
For close to ten minutes Vegeta sat in silence as Bulma tinkered with her project, something he couldn't even begin to understand. Not only did it appear to be just the innards of the machine, but it also didn't resemble anything close to something he knew. It was a three-foot high, four-inch wide tower of microchips; pieces of colorful wire could be seen through holes, and at some points the spidered ends of the wire stuck out to be connected to whatever it was meant for.  
  
"Why do you wear your hair like that?" he asked, leaning in to try to steal a kiss. Bulma was quicker, however, and took a step to the side, pretending to check her blueprint.  
  
"Like what?" she asked. She looked up and smiled.  
  
"Up high. I don't like it."  
  
"Well I'm sorry, but there aren't many ways I can wear my hair that won't get in the way of my work."  
  
"What about pigtails?" He smirked. "Pigtails are sexy."  
  
"Ick!" She stuck out her tongue and wrinkled her nose in disgust. "I despise pigtails."  
  
"Despise?" he laughed.  
  
"Yes, despise. They make my head look lopsided. I can't stand them. Haven't worn them since I was three."  
  
"You're strange, woman. Very strange."  
  
"Thanks. But I don't see what the big deal is."  
  
"They're a turn-on. One of these days you'll wear them for me, and you'll be very lucky when you do." He raised his eyebrows suggestively and leaned back.  
  
"That'll be the day," she laughed. She glanced at her tower of microchips and frowned. "Alright. I guess I'm done. There's really nothing more I can do right now that won't take forever. Give me fifteen minutes and I'll meet you in the living room."  
  
Vegeta hopped off the stool he'd been sitting on and was just about to comment that he could wait in her room, when he spotted something unusual. Bulma finished packing up her tools and closed her tool chest, which had a giant sunflower sticker plastered to it. Normally, this wouldn't have given him pause, but Bulma wasn't your ordinary girl. She was a tomboy, and as far as he knew she'd never expressed interest in flowers of any kind.  
  
"What're you looking at?" Bulma asked, catching his attention. He looked up and pointed at her tool chest. "Yeah? What about it?"  
  
"What kind of a tomboy likes flowers?"  
  
"I don't," she said defensively, pushing the toolbox out of his line of vision.  
  
"Then why do you have a big sunflower sticker on that?"  
  
"I don't like flowers," she repeated, as though she'd been insulted. "Never have. Except the sunflower, because it's big and gawky and yellow."  
  
"Yellow?" It was Vegeta's turn to look disgusted.  
  
"Yes, yellow. It's my favorite color."  
  
"You keep getting stranger and stranger, woman. Anything else you want to shock me with?"  
  
"Shut up," she laughed, grabbing him playfully by the collar and giving him a quick, but sexy, kiss on the lips. "Oops. I guess you're going to have to wash your face."  
  
oooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooo  
  
Vegeta bolted upright in bed, nearly tumbling to the floor. Quickly he turned on the lights and took in the surroundings of his hotel room. After a moment he took a deep breath and leaned back onto his pillows, satisfied that it was only a dream.  
  
"Stupid woman," he grumbled, pulling himself out of bed for a glass of water. He padded across the room and into his bathroom. He fumbled sleepily with the light switch, though as the room flooded with light, he was instantly awake.  
  
The walls of the hotel bathroom were a pale yellow color, and in a picture hanging above the toilet was a young girl with curly blonde pigtails looking up at a field of massive sunflowers. Of course he'd seen these things before, but, after having dreamed of that not too long ago memory of Bulma, he couldn't take his eyes off it.  
  
Angrily, he stomped back to his bed and curled into the sheets, completely forgetting about the water.  
  
ooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooo  
  
Bulma sat idly at her desk in homeroom, staring at the clock and willing it to move quicker. It was Friday morning, and she was no closer to the weekend. Beside her Yamcha took a nap on his crossed arms, his face serene and happy. She glanced over at him and smiled. A few days before when she told him she was pregnant, and about 18's proposition, he was completely supportive and even offered to fill the spot as her fake boyfriend. And while that was a good idea, he and Tsuki would never be able to go out in public without rumors spreading that he was cheating on Bulma.  
  
So, now she was left with barhopping and praying that some half-decent guy would be paid to appear with her in public a few times.  
  
"Five minutes," Bulma mumbled to herself as the second-hand slowly made its rounds. She was about to grab her backpack, to have it ready to put on when the bell rang, when something caught her eye. In the front of the class several jocks talked and laughed loudly, trying in vain to get the rest of the room to look at them. Normally Bulma wouldn't think twice about them, but her life lately was anything but normal. One guy inparticular stuck out, a tall football player with short brown hair and calm blue eyes.  
  
He doesn't seem to mind a lot of attention, Bulma thought to herself as she stood. A second later the bell rang, and Bulma raced for the front of the room to catch the football player before he was swallowed by his cronies and groupies.  
  
"Hey," Bulma said, grabbing his thick, muscular arm and pulling him away from his friends.  
  
Any other person, and he would have pretended like nothing happened and kept walking. But this was Bulma Briefs, and when she wanted your attention, she got it.  
  
"Hey," the guy replied, puffing himself up.  
  
"What's your name?"  
  
"Omezo."  
  
"Hi Omezo. I'm Bul—"  
  
"I know who you are." He glanced over his shoulder at the open door.  
  
"Don't worry, I won't be long. I was just wondering if you could do me a favor." Omezo looked uninterested. "For a generous fee, of course."  
  
"What kind of a favor?"  
  
Bulma smiled and looped her arm through his, escorting him out the door.  
  
"Well, it goes like this..."  
  
ooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooo  
  
18 looked at her caller ID and furrowed her brow.  
  
"Bulma?" she said, answering her cellular phone.  
  
"Hey, 18. How's the tour?"  
  
"Fine. What's up? It's only Friday. We're on in twenty minutes."  
  
"Kuso," Bulma swore. "Sorry. I forgot. I just wanted to tell you that I found a guy."  
  
"Really? Where?"  
  
"At school. He's prefect, though. Tall, brown hair, blue eyes, extremely sexy. Plus he's a jock, so it was easy to get him to agree for the amount of money I was offering him."  
  
"You did tell him not to tell anyone he was being paid, right?"  
  
"Of course," Bulma laughed, almost offended that 18 would ask her such a thing. "He didn't have the slightest problem with it. And I told him that if he told anyone, or didn't do what I asked, that I'd ruin his reputation in the papers."  
  
"Damn Bulma," 18 laughed. "You're a badass."  
  
"Yeah, well, I figure I should be able to order him around seeing as how much money he's being paid. I even asked him how much he wanted a week for the favor, and he said a hundred bucks. Clearly he's solid."  
  
"Well, I must say I'm impress. You're a regular showbiz know-it-all."  
  
"Yeah, well, I had good teachers. Anyway, I'll let you get back to...er...your stuff."  
  
"Hang on," 18 said, catching Bulma just before she hung up.  
  
"Yeah?"  
  
"I talked to Vegeta about meeting you tomorrow."  
  
"Oh...Right...What did he say?"  
  
"He was skeptical, but he agreed."  
  
"Skeptical? About what?"  
  
"He didn't believe that it was you who wanted to see him. He thought I was setting it up and that you didn't know he would be there. So..."  
  
"What?"  
  
"He's coming to your house."  
  
"Excuse me?" Bulma's tone quickly jumped from indifferent to angry.  
  
"That's the only way he would agree to it. But hey, look at the bright side."  
  
"And that is?"  
  
"You're one step closer to giving your child a happy upbringing."  
  
Bulma groaned loudly, but she knew 18 was right.  
  
"Alright," she sighed. "What time?"  
  
"Ten a.m."  
  
"Kami. Now I have to get up early too."  
  
"Sorry, but he needs to be back by eight so we can head out for our Monday concert."  
  
"Alright, alright."  
  
"Just one more thing."  
  
"I know!" Bulma scoffed. "I have to tell him I'm pregnant. Yadda, yadda, yadda."  
  
"B, are you ok?"  
  
"Yeah, I'm fine. Mood swings. I'll talk to you later."  
  
"Ok. Feel better."  
  
"Thanks."  
  
Bulma hung up the phone and leaned back against her headboard. Slowly she pulled up her shirt and spread her hands across her soon-to-be-swollen belly. In six and a half months she'd be a mother, and she was no more prepared to tell Vegeta he'd be a father.  
  
oooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooo  
  
---Chapter 5! Wow! I'm really impressed with myself for that one :) I don't gloat :P Heehee...Anyway, I think I got a lot done with this chapter. Bulma gets a fake boyfriend, she's trying to reconcile with Vegeta, and she made a deal with 18 to tell him about the baby before she started to show. Things are finally starting to work out. YAY! :D  
  
REVIEW!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! (Reviews=More Chapters)  
  
Next time: Vegeta comes to see Bulma...  
  
Note: What did my lovely readers like of my flashback dream? Nice, huh? Heehee :D I thought it'd be nice to show you all some moments in that month and a half Bulma and Vegeta dated. And yes, there will be more :) Weeeeeee... 


	6. The Necklace

Last time:  
  
"Thanks."  
  
Bulma hung up the phone and leaned back against her headboard. Slowly she pulled up her shirt and spread her hands across her soon-to-be-swollen belly. In six and a half months she'd be a mother, and she was no more prepared to tell Vegeta he'd be a father.  
  
oooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooo  
  
"Are you leaving me, Vegeta!?" Bulma screamed, hastily jerking her shirt over her head.  
  
He didn't respond as he dressed himself.  
  
"Answer me!" She scrambled off the bed, shoving him and nearly knocking him over as he tried to slip on his boots.  
  
"I'm doing what I have to!" he snapped.  
  
"Bullshit!" In her fury she accidentally knocked over her bedside lamp, and the bulb shattered when it hit the floor, the metal of its frame clanging noisily. If those in her house had not woken from the yelling, then surely that had done it.  
  
Vegeta grabbed her by the arms and jerked her forward.  
  
"I'm going now before I have a chance to hurt you," he hissed, then shoved her back onto the bed.  
  
"Too late," was the last thing he heard before he shut the door and left.  
  
She stared at the door for a moment, confused and still quite dazed from the incident. She blinked a few times to clear her eyes, when she noticed something cold and metal under her hand; Vegeta's long silver chain with the dime-sized pendent bearing a winged dragon. Even as one of his biggest fans from the beginning of Green Dragon, Bulma had never known about the necklace. He hadn't been wearing it two nights ago at the New Year's Eve party, and when she'd inquired as to why, he snapped that he just picked it up from the shop for repairs and cleaning. Clearly it was very important.  
  
She slipped it on over her head and tucked it in her shirt, before curling into a ball and falling asleep to the sound of the morning birds' songs.  
  
ooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooo  
  
Bulma sighed deeply and shook her head to clear her thoughts. She reached into her sweater and pulled out the dragon necklace, satisfied that it was still on her, then hid it again. Vegeta still didn't know that the reason he couldn't find his precious necklace was because she still had it from that night in the beginning of their relationship. She'd kept it as a reminder that he could snap at any moment. Needless to say, he crawled back into bed a few hours later and they never mentioned it again.  
  
"You look tired," Mrs. Briefs said as she took a seat across from her daughter at the kitchen table. "Did you not sleep well?"  
  
"I'm fine," Bulma sighed. "Vegeta's coming by today, so I'm a little on edge."  
  
"Vegeta? My, are you two—"  
  
"No, I'm still stewing in my anger, but I realized that I couldn't stay mad forever when we're bringing a child into this world. I refuse to raise a son or daughter in an environment where their parents are at each other's throats all the time…I figure that in time we can be friends again, like him and 18. In the mean time, however, I'm just going to work on not cracking my teeth when his name is mentioned."  
  
"Well," her mother said with a bright smile. "I'm very proud of your maturity in the situation…Have you told him about the baby yet? Or is that why he's coming by?"  
  
"No I haven't, and yes I will. I hope."  
  
"Well, I wish you the best of luck." She looked over Bulma's shoulder at the clock. "What time will he be here?"  
  
"Ten," Bulma groaned.  
  
"He should be here any minute."  
  
"I know…Where are you going?" she asked, noticing that her mother was dressed up slightly.  
  
"You mentioned that you've been spending some time with Vegeta's mother, so I thought I should get to know her, too. We're having breakfast downtown, then going shopping for the afternoon. Please tell Vegeta I said hello."  
  
"Will do." Mrs. Briefs stood and kissed her daughter lightly on the cheek.  
  
"I hope everything works out for you, dear."  
  
"Me too…"  
  
oooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooo  
  
"Excuse me," Bulma said, covering her mouth. "Eggs don't agree with me." Vegeta looked up from his plate and grunted, then went back to shoveling in food. He'd been there for twenty minutes already, and they'd hardly said two words to each other. She was about to try to spark conversation, ease herself into bringing up the baby, when that all too familiar sensation started creeping up her throat. Quickly she dashed to the sink, just in time to expel her breakfast down the drain.  
  
"Kami, woman," Vegeta said. He stood and walked over to her, placing a warm hand on the small of her back. She turned on the water and ignored his hand, telling herself over and over that if she didn't let some things slide they'd never be on good terms. "What did your mother do to those eggs?"  
  
"Nothing," Bulma laughed forcefully. She wiped her mouth and leaned against the sink. Now was the perfect time to tell him. "Look, Vegeta—"  
  
"What in Kami's name do you have around your neck?" Vegeta hissed, pulling the necklace into view. It must have come partially out when she leaned over the sink. "You've had this the entire time?" He pulled it roughly over her head and fastened it around his neck. "How dare you—"  
  
"How dare I what? Keep some stupid hunk of cheap silver?" she snapped back. "I'm so sorry! It's not something like cheating, that's forgivable. I kept your dumb necklace that you were careless enough to leave at my house."  
  
"It isn't stupid and it isn't cheap," he said through his teeth. "And you had no right to take it."  
  
"And you had no right to hurt me, but things happen. Deal with it."  
  
For a long while they were silent, both standing straight, their arms crossed rigidly over their chests. Cold black eyes pierced fiery blue eyes until neither could stand it any longer and looked away. Bulma walked over to the table and cleared the dishes in silence, while Vegeta watched her intently, knowing something was different, but not being able to figure what.  
  
"Ok, this is a horrible way to start," Bulma said, turning to Vegeta. "There's a reason you are here, and it isn't to fight with me all day. We need to drop the bullshit and make amends. This fighting isn't going to work. I…" But she trailed off, remembering that he still didn't know about the baby. "I'm not happy being mad all the time."  
  
"I don't understand why you want to make up so badly. When are we going to see each other? A handful of days out of a year, tops. I only agreed to come because if I didn't the vein in 18's forehead would have exploded."  
  
Bulma laughed despite the seriousness of the conversation. She missed being this way with him so badly. Just spending time together, the way they had in Europe. She laughed again, this time louder, recalling another conversation she and Vegeta had had.  
  
"What's so funny?"  
  
"Us," she sighed. "Didn't I tell you that the moment you were in my bed we'd go down hill? And look, we're at rock bottom."  
  
"Bravo," Vegeta scoffed. "You're never wrong."  
  
"Oh stop. Loosen up. I'm the one who's supposed to be all tense and angry, not you. You're supposed to crack the jokes and piss ME off. That's how this cheating thing works. You should know that."  
  
"I usually don't see the girl ever again."  
  
"True. But we can't avoid each other, just like I couldn't avoid Yamcha. It was inevitable that we would become friends again, even if he did cheat on me."  
  
"Your ex cheated on you?" Vegeta baulked. "Was he insane?"  
  
"Umm…Excuse me? Vegeta, YOU cheated on me too."  
  
"I know," he said, rolling his eyes, "but I am insane. What Average Joe cheats on someone like you? Granted you're a little plain, but it works for you."  
  
"I'll take that as a compliment."  
  
"I'm still pissed at you."  
  
"At me? For what?"  
  
"You took my necklace."  
  
"Kami," Bulma sighed, heading for the door. "I can't win."  
  
"No, you can't." Vegeta followed suit, walking beside her into the living room, where they sat unusual close on the couch. "What movie?"  
  
"How do you know we're not going to watch TV?"  
  
"Because," he said, looking over at her and fighting the urge to kiss her, "I know you, and you hardly watch TV…What movie?"  
  
"Braveheart," she said. She turned to him too, knowing that if he curtains weren't pulled closed he would see the blush on her cheeks. Why couldn't she stop wanting him when she knew he was completely wrong for her? For anyone.  
  
"Braveheart? What a perfect way to start the day."  
  
"I thought so. I need to see a little blood and guts to get the thought of murder off my mind."  
  
"Funny woman, very funny."  
  
"I know," she sighed, easing into her place and pressing play on the VCR remote. "That's why you love me."  
  
And, to her utter surprise, his eyes stayed on hers until the movie started rolling and he didn't say a word. At first she thought he might kiss her, and she honestly couldn't convince herself that she wouldn't let him, but when he didn't she couldn't even begin to guess what was on his mind.  
  
ooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooo  
  
"Tell me everything," 18 demanded frantically.  
  
"Well hello to you too," Bulma laughed.  
  
"Sorry…Tell me."  
  
"Alright, alright. Kami. Calm down. He just left five minutes ago. He'll definitely be back in time to hit the road."  
  
"Well I guess its safe to say you didn't kill each other."  
  
"Of course not. 18, I said I was going to make an honest effort and I did. We had some breakfast, watched a movie, and tinkered in my lab until he left. I helped him make a dragon egg lighter that cracks open at the top."  
  
"You can make those?" 18 asked, completely baffled. She really was a genius.  
  
"I could make those when I was eight. It's really cool looking though, 'cause the only scrap pieces I had were small and silver so it looks like a bionic egg or something. I think I'll make another one I like it so much."  
  
"Great, but Bulma, I didn't hear you say you told him about the baby."  
  
"I know," she sighed. "That's because I didn't."  
  
"But—"  
  
"Hey, you said until I show and I'm a month and a half from showing, so give me a break. It's not like I didn't try. I even threw up in the kitchen sink at breakfast, so I had the perfect set up."  
  
"But?"  
  
"But he saw the necklace I was wearing and got mad, and I totally forgot about telling him."  
  
"Necklace? What—Bulma Briefs! You're the one who had his dragon necklace?"  
  
"He left it at my house after a stupid fight. I was mad so I didn't give it back right away. And then he cheated on me so I didn't see a reason to ever give it back."  
  
"Damn, he was ranting about that thing forever. Thank Kami he has it back. I just hope his mother doesn't find out you had it."  
  
"His mother? Why would she care?"  
  
"It wa—Hey, I got to get going. I promised Krillin I'd call him tonight. I'll talk to you later."  
  
"Hey, wait—" But she was met with a click and silence. She hung up the phone and frowned. There was something special about that necklace, and she planned to find out.  
  
ooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooo  
  
Bulma walked briskly through the crowd of students to catch up to him as he headed for the parking lot. A second before his foot hit the pavement, she grabbed his arm and spun him around, smiling warmly up at him.  
  
"Kiss me," she whispered out of the corner of her mouth, her eyes quickly darting across the street where a suspicious black car was parked. Omezo shrugged and wrapped his arms around her petite waist, pulling her close until their lips touched for the first time. They held together for a sufficient amount of time, then Bulma pulled back and said, "Great. I think the reporter got that."  
  
"What reporter?" Omezo asked, looking around. "I don't see anyone."  
  
"He's gone now. He was in a black car across the street over there." She pointed to where the car had been.  
  
"How did you know he was there?"  
  
"Because I called him and told him to be there."  
  
"But isn't the point of this—whatever it is—to make everyone believe we're actually together. Wouldn't calling the papers tip them off?"  
  
"Not if I call from a payphone and disguise my voice. I've done it before to send reporters on a wild goose chase so I could go out with Yamcha in peace." She shrugged and took a step back. "They never ask who is calling. Even if I lie nine times out of ten they're not going to risk getting a story. They usually send out rookies on anonymous tips."  
  
"How do you know so much about the media?"  
  
"You have to know your enemies," Bulma laughed. "It's the first rule of warfare…Well, either that or shoot whatever moves."  
  
Omezo let out a guttural laugh and leaned against the hood of his car.  
  
"You're different than I thought you'd be," he said. "Nicer."  
  
"I looked mean?" No one had ever said that to or about her before. Usually it was the other way around; they expected her to be nice and she'd end up throwing some jerk against a locker.  
  
"Not mean, just…distant. I'll tell you one thing, I never thought I'd have a conversation with Bulma Briefs, let alone kiss her."  
  
Bulma blushed at the compliment and looked away. Chi-Chi and Maris were already at her car, waiting for her and Krillin. Luckily Krillin had to stay after for a few minutes, so she wasn't the only one they were waiting on.  
  
"Hey, what are you doing Friday night?"  
  
"Pep rally."  
  
Bulma wrinkled her nose.  
  
"Sorry," he laughed. "Not all of us go to science fairs on the weekends."  
  
"Is there any chance you can cancel to have dinner with me?"  
  
Omezo frowned.  
  
"I'll throw in an extra two hundred bucks if you do."  
  
"You've got a deal my friend," he said, holding out his hand. Bulma grabbed around his shoulders instead, and gave him a quick peck on the cheek just incase any standby reporters were creeping around.  
  
"Did you tell your friends about me?" she asked, her arms still around him.  
  
"Are you kidding? The second you left I told them you asked me out. The entire school thinks we're a couple. I'm surprised you didn't hear anyone talking about it."  
  
"Really?" she laughed. "I guess I've been too reoccupied. But hey, I'll see you tomorrow in homeroom, honey." She kissed his cheek one last time for good measure and jogged off towards her car, just as Krillin was getting there and hopped in.  
  
Across the parking lot Omezo watched her small blue sport's car speed away, not being able to ease the strange feeling that was building in his stomach.  
  
ooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooo  
  
---Chapter 6! :D Sorry about the shortness, I promise the next chapter will be longer. I just wanted to get this one out. Oh, and sorry too about not having Bulma tell Vegeta about the baby. I know everyone is anxious to see his reaction and such, but the way I have the story planned out Vegeta needs to be in the dark for a little while longer. If all goes well I plan on having him know in 2-3 chapters.  
  
REVIEW!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! (Reviews=More Chapters)  
  
Next time: Bulma and Omezo get their picture on the front page of Tokyo's biggest magazine. Eeep! What will happen!?  
  
Note: Please don't kill me for not letting Vegeta know about the baby. It really is important to the story that he doesn't know right now. I promise it'll all make sense later on, and if it doesn't then feel free to e-mail me and I'll clear things up.  
  
P.S. Sorry about the format of the past two chapters. I don't know what's going on with and hopefully I can fix it soon.  
  
P.P.S. What do you think of Omezo? :P I'm still not sure about him myself, I'm still feeling it out. But I do have big plans for him :D Oh I'm so evil!  
  
One More Thing: The necklace Vegeta has isn't cheesy, you know, like bling bling. It's small and on a long chain and he always wears it inside his shirt. The pendant is the size and shape of a dime, and there's a picture of a dragon craved into it. 


	7. Candid Camera

Last time:  
  
"Really?" she laughed. "I guess I've been too reoccupied. But hey, I'll see you tomorrow in homeroom, honey." She kissed his cheek one last time for good measure and jogged off towards her car, just as Krillin was getting there and hopped in.  
  
Across the parking lot Omezo watched her small blue sport's car speed away, not being able to ease the strange feeling that was building in his stomach.  
  
oooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooo  
  
Vegeta walked leisurely through the living room of his hotel room to the front door, sipping his coffee as he went. He opened the door, bent down to retrieve the newspaper and magazines he'd requested, and spit his coffee all over.  
  
"What the hell!?" he yelled, dropping the mug and not caring that it soaked into the hallway carpeting. He dashed two doors down and pounding frantically on the door until 18 answered, none too pleased to be woken by him after such a restless night. "What the hell is this about?" he snapped, shoving one of the two magazines he'd requested in her face. "I know how much you talk to her."  
  
"Give me that," 18 sighed, and pulled him into her room and slammed the door. She took a seat on the couch and examined the front cover, smiling inwardly at what she saw. It was Bulma walking down a miscellaneous street, her body pressed tight against a man with his arm around her that 18 guessed was Omezo. The caption below the image read: Is this new mystery man The One for Capsule Corp. Heiress Bulma Briefs, or is he only a way to keep her mind off punk rocker Vegeta Ouji? "I don't see what the problem is. I think it's a very nice picture."  
  
"I don't give a damn about picture quality. Who is that man?"  
  
"Why?" Now 18 felt free to let herself smile. He was jealous, an emotion she rarely knew him to use. "What's it matter? She didn't mean anything to you. Maybe the dumb magazine is right. Maybe she's really in love with the guy."  
  
"You knew about him."  
  
"Yes. His name is Omezo and he goes to school with her. What's the big deal? It's not like she's been with him forever. They just started dating a few weeks ago."  
  
"You should have told me."  
  
"Why? You still haven't told me why you're obsessing over this."  
  
"I'm not obsessing," Vegeta huffed, finally taking a seat beside her.  
  
"I think you care about her."  
  
"Screw you, 18."  
  
"No, really. Why else would you agree to try to reconcile with her? Or care if she's seeing someone else?"  
  
"She was different, ok? The other girls didn't care if I ever talked to them again, even the ones who filed lawsuits. They only wanted media attention…But her," he said, pointing to the magazine cover. "She was different. She was upset for herself when I cheated on her and I don't understand how she's with another guy so soon."  
  
"So soon? Vegeta, it's been like two months. Besides, did you really think she liked you that much? I mean, to be so torn up about it that she didn't date for a year? Come on. She's not naïve, Vegeta. She didn't let herself fall for you that hard."  
  
Vegeta only grunted and leaned back, unable to stop looking at the magazine.  
  
"She should have told me."  
  
"Why?" 18 turned to him, setting the magazine face down on the coffee table. "Look, she's over you. She doesn't care if you go off with a million other girls. You slept with someone else when you were supposed to be her boyfriend, so you shouldn't care who she sees either. She doesn't need to tell you when she's seeing someone new. You have no say in what she does."  
  
"I was with her all day Saturday and she never mentioned that muscle-brain once. And look at the guy. Must be a football player and a moron, too. He's not her type."  
  
"Vegeta, are you feeling ok? You sound like 17 or something. I've never heard you talk about a girl like this."  
  
"Shut up," he demanded, then stood and stormed out of the room.  
  
18 grabbed up the magazine again and flipped to the article they had about Bulma and Omezo, all the while not being able to keep from smiling to her ears. It was just the reaction she was hoping for.  
  
oooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooo  
  
"Let me see!" Bulma cried happily as she dashed across the room to the front door. Chi-Chi held out her arms playfully as if telling her to stop. "Kami," she whispered, as she knelt down and placed her hands on Chi-Chi's belly. There was just the slightest hint of a bump that no one would have noticed unless they knew she was pregnant. "When did you notice it?"  
  
"Yesterday," Chi-Chi said, finally stepping into the living room. "Well, last night. I was on the phone with Goku really late and then I looked down and saw a belly. At first I was horrified," she laughed, "'cause I thought I was getting fat, but then reality hit me and I talked Goku's ear off about if for the rest of the night."  
  
"And they're coming home today?"  
  
"Yup. I told Goku to bring everyone here if that's not a problem."  
  
"Nope, not at all."  
  
"Great. They're going to be in town for a few nights before flying to America." A frown sudden appeared in place of Chi-Chi's smile and she sunk into one of the living room chairs. "I'm going to miss him so much. A whole month without my Goku, its like torture…It IS torture!"  
  
Bulma laughed, then walked over to the door after hearing the bell ring. No doubt it was Krillin and Maris, waiting for their chance to touch Chi-Chi's tiny belly as well. She was in for a surprise when she opened the door. Not only were Krillin and Maris there, but everyone else as well.  
  
"You sure got here fast," she said to 18, who shrugged and walked in, her arm slung over Krillin's shoulder. Goku barely got out a hello as he ran for Chi-Chi, immediately falling to his knees before her, his hands roaming all over her stomach. If no one knew she was pregnant it would have been a strange sight.  
  
"Hey B," 17 said, giving her a quick hug and kiss on the cheek before looping his arm around Maris again and entering the house.  
  
The last person was Vegeta, whose glare seemed deeper than usual. Had something happened in the week she hadn't spoken to him?  
  
"Did you eat a lemon?" she asked, surprising herself with how calm and content she was in his presence. Two weeks ago she would have chased him away wielding a frying pan. "You look…sour." She couldn't help laughing at that one. She glanced quickly at the rest of the group, who were so completely immersed in Chi-Chi that they didn't notice she and Vegeta still stood at the open door. "Aren't you going to come in?"  
  
"Don't be a bitch, ok?" he said, and before Bulma could ask what he meant, he reached out, grabbed the back of her head, and pulled her in for one of the most passionate kisses she could remember. When he released her a moment later her head was reeling, though she quickly found her bearings.  
  
"What the hell was that?" she snapped. "You are NOT allowed to touch me that way!"  
  
"I said not to be a bitch."  
  
"Yeah, well, it works both ways and you're being an insane jerk-off. What the hell was that all about? And you better not try that again, because I will make you sorry."  
  
"I just wanted to see something," he stated monotone.  
  
"See what? My tonsils?"  
  
To her surprise he actually laughed. "No woman. I wanted to see your reaction when I did that."  
  
"Umm, what would make you think you needed to test that? Of course I'm not going to let you kiss me, you moron. You cheated on me. It's not rocket science!"  
  
"I was referring to your new boy toy."  
  
"What?"  
  
"That guy you're dating. Omezo."  
  
"What about him?"  
  
"Nevermind." Finally he walked in and took a seat beside Goku, though stayed away from the baby festivities. Bulma stood, stunned, for a moment, then followed suit and sat next to Krillin on the arm of the couch. What did kissing her like that have to do with Omezo? "So, woman, where is your lover boy?"  
  
"Home."  
  
"Why? Shouldn't he be here falling all over you?"  
  
"He has a life besides me, Vegeta. Why? Are you jealous?" Her lips curled into a devilish smirk. "That's not like you, Mr. Ego."  
  
For several hours the group sat in Bulma's living room, simply chatting and enjoying each other's company. By two a.m., however, no one could deny their tiredness, and people started to leave by couples. First to go were Chi-Chi and Goku, though Chi-Chi refused at first, and only seemed to agree to soothe Goku's paranoia that she needed to rest or the baby would be deformed or something. Next were Krillin and 18, who couldn't keep their hands off each other, who inevitably took 17 and Maris along with them, for 17 and 18 came in the same car and were going to the same place.  
  
That left only Vegeta, who, at 2:15, didn't seem to be going anywhere any time soon.  
  
"Aren't you going to go too?" Bulma yawned, coming back into the living room after grabbing a glass of milk.  
  
"Not yet," he said, lying down on the couch and making himself more comfortable. "Want to come join me?" he teased.  
  
"Shut up." She rolled her eyes and took a seat on the couch perpendicular to the one he was on.  
  
"Come on. You can't tell me that that kiss didn't mean anything to you."  
  
"It didn't."  
  
"It looked like it affected you."  
  
"Well yeah," she scoffed. "You kissed me and I have a boyfriend. Of course it affected me."  
  
"I meant in a good way," he sighed, then sat up. "Look me in the eye and tell me you don't still want to be with me."  
  
Bulma leveled his gaze, set down her milk, and said, "Vegeta, I do not want to be with you. You hurt me, we're over, and I'm fine with that now."  
  
"Now?"  
  
"Usually people are upset when they're cheated on, Vegeta. I know it's never happened to you before, but you've sure done it enough to know. I was sad for a week and then I moved on. No offense, but you're not much to cry over."  
  
"You said you loved me."  
  
"And you said the world without me was meaningless and you couldn't bear to be without me."  
  
"I was quoting," he said, obviously annoyed that things weren't going his way.  
  
"You still said it, which proves that nothing anyone says has to be true."  
  
"How many guys have you ruined with that line?" Vegeta scoffed.  
  
"None. I don't hurt people the way you do. And if I have, I didn't enjoy it and I didn't mean it."  
  
"The thing with you, woman, is that no one believes you could lie to them. You put on this good girl façade and pull people into your happy little world, and then you say things like that and don't mean them and end up hurting people."  
  
"Vegeta, what are you talking about? I haven't hurt anyone by saying that. I meant it with Yamcha, and he's the only guy I've said it too besides you, and you don't feel emotion like us humans do."  
  
Vegeta wrinkled his nose at her insult.  
  
"And what do you mean, put on a façade? What did you do with me? What are you doing now? I don't know who you are Vegeta and I never will. No one does and our ch—" She stopped herself before spilling her secret. Yes he should know, but not like this. Not during a fight. "Just stop with the games so we can be friends again. That's really what I want right now. I liked when it was just me and you hanging out, watching movies, and talking about Anzai. The other feelings just ruined everything. I got caught up in a relationship with you and dropped my guard. I should have never allowed that to happen, because then you wouldn't have had a chance to hurt me." She stopped there and startled Vegeta with laughter.  
  
"What's so funny?" he demanded.  
  
"Nothing. It's just weird, you know, what I'm saying. Wouldn't have a chance to hurt me? Kami, there's no manual for knowing a person like you, Vegeta. I'm actually justifying your infidelity because that's who you are. It's insane…But, you know what?"  
  
"What?"  
  
"I think I'm really good with this. You cheated on me, but that's ok now because I'm over it and I realized that me and you as a couple is like oil and water. We don't mix and we never will."  
  
Vegeta looked at her strangely for a moment, then stood and walked out of the house without saying a word. Bulma quickly ran after him, catching up to him just as he got in his car.  
  
"So, what do you say?" she asked, skidding to a stop.  
  
"About what?"  
  
"Are we friends again?"  
  
Vegeta gave her the same look, but didn't answer.  
  
"Well?"  
  
"When weren't we friends?"  
  
"When you screwed that girl. Honestly, Vegeta, it's like you live every day with a clean slated mind."  
  
"Here." He reached into the back seat of his car and handed Bulma a rectangular object wrapped in brown paper. She knew exactly what it was without opening it.  
  
"Vegeta. I gave this back to you for a reason."  
  
"I know. The reason was we weren't friends."  
  
"Why are you giving it back?"  
  
"Honestly, woman," he sighed, starting the engine of his car. "You're the dumbest genius on earth."  
  
ooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooo  
  
"Come on, Vegeta," 17 groaned, his back against the doorframe. "We're already late."  
  
Vegeta ignored him, however, and continued to poke and feed the fire he'd started an hour before. It was 2:20, and they were all supposed to be at Maris's twenty minutes ago to spend their last day with them before going to the United States tomorrow. But, as it looked right now, Vegeta wasn't planning on going anywhere.  
  
"What're you doing, anyway?" He walked over and crouched down to Vegeta's level and peered into the flames. "Vegeta, why are you burning magazines?" But then he saw a flash of Bulma's face just before the flames engulfed it. He stood slowly and collected his thoughts. Could Vegeta actually miss Bulma? He had been acting very strange since their break-up, even stranger than usual. "Vegeta, is there something you want to talk about?"  
  
"No," he grunted, not looking up from the flames. A sparkle caught 17's eye.  
  
"I see you found your necklace."  
  
Nothing.  
  
"Come on. Are you coming or not?"  
  
"I'm not coming, so don't waste your time."  
  
"Why not? Bulma won't like it if you don't say good-bye. You two are friends now, right?"  
  
"News travels fast," he murmured under his breath.  
  
"Fine. I'll see you at the airport tomorrow."  
  
17 was just about out the door, when he turned back around. Something was completely wrong with the situation and he couldn't keep his thoughts to himself any longer.  
  
"You love her, don't you?"  
  
Silence.  
  
"You don't have to tell me, I can see it. That's why you've been acting so weird lately. You miss her and you love her and you're just now realizing it. You know you made a mistake and there's nothing you can do to change it." He sighed deeply. "I'm sorry to say this, but I did warn you. I told you you'd fall in love and she'd see through you and you'd end up alone. I'm sorry that I was right. Everyone deserves love…Even you."  
  
"Are you going or what?" Vegeta hissed from the fire, not looking up.  
  
17 shook his head sadly and exited the room, the vision of Bulma's burning face forever imprinted on his mind, and the look in Vegeta's eyes as he stared at the flames.  
  
ooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooo  
  
---Chapter 7! Well, well, well, would you look at that? Interesting developments I have going on, huh? :P I like to think so anyway. Damn Vegeta! Why doesn't he go see Bulma before he leaves!?…Well, maybe because I wrote it that way, heehee. :P Oh silly me!  
  
REVIEW!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! (Reviews=More Chapters)  
  
Next time: U.S. for Green Dragon…Chaos for all!!…Muhahahahahaha!  
  
Note: Corrections later…blah…blah…:P 


	8. Beauty In The Breakdown

Last time:  
  
"Are you going or what?" Vegeta hissed from the fire, not looking up.  
  
17 shook his head sadly and exited the room, the vision of Bulma's burning face forever imprinted on his mind, and the look in Vegeta's eyes as he stared at the flames.  
  
ooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooo  
  
Bulma let out a burst of laughter and threw her head back. All eyes in the restaurant were on her, but she ignored them, as she always did. Across the table Omezo chuckled lightly to himself and took a sip of tea.  
  
"That's crazy," she sighed, catching her breath. "And he never found out it was you?"  
  
"Nope," Omezo laughed. "I told my mom it was me a few weeks later and even she couldn't stop laughing. But that's what he gets for inking my tea when I had her over. He's lucky I'm not that creative, or he would have really paid."  
  
"It must be great to have siblings. Someone to terrorize. I have friends that are twins and they're always at odds. A little while ago one of them gave all the other one's clothes away and left them with only one hideous outfit. He was so mad he wouldn't talk to her for a week."  
  
"Yeah. That's pretty much how it is at my house. Me and my brother are always fighting. Me and my sister Mai, on the other hand, get along great. She's Baiko's twin, but they don't get along either."  
  
"You have a sister? Kami, I'm jealous," she sighed. "I've always wanted a sister. It's easy to say that Chi-Chi is like a sister, but of course its not the same…How old is Mai?"  
  
"Sixteen, but she's very smart for her age. She goes to a private school in Tokyo."  
  
"Really? Which one?"  
  
"Taikato Institute."  
  
"You're not serious!" Bulma practically yelled, slapping her hands on the table before her. "I've been getting letters from them since I was eight!"  
  
"Eight?" Omezo baulked. "Kami, you're smarter than I thought. Mai's only been there since last year…Why didn't you go? Aren't you bored with your classes at Orange Star?"  
  
"Yeah," she laughed. "Very. But I wanted to stay with my friends, and my parents didn't have a problem with that so I stayed."  
  
"Well I'm glad you did," Omezo said, looking out the window at the parking lot. Bulma smiled and reached across the table to grab his hand. He looked up, surprised.  
  
"I'm glad you're the guy I picked for this. I didn't think I'd end up having such a good time."  
  
Omezo looked directly into her eyes, holding them for a long while. And then the food arrived and they didn't mention it again.  
  
oooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooo  
  
"So, how's the U.S.?" Bulma asked, curling up comfortably on her bed, the phone nestled on her shoulder.  
  
"It's boring," 17 sighed, "and I miss Maris. I just talked to her ten minutes ago and I'm going crazy."  
  
"Well I'm sorry I'm not as entertaining."  
  
"Shut up," he laughed. "You know what I mean."  
  
"I trust the concerts are going well. I haven't seen anything on the news about you guys."  
  
"Yes, Vegeta's behaving himself. He's actually been in his room most of the time…Alone."  
  
"Where is he now?"  
  
"Why? Do you want to talk to him? Do you maybe have something to tell him?"  
  
"Hey! I'm trying. It isn't my fault that things come up when I try to tell him…So where is he?"  
  
"18 took him out since he hasn't left the room since we got here. Well, except for concerts. But then he locks himself in his room again. I don't know what's going on with him, but it's starting to worry me. He's NEVER been like this before…I think—Now don't yell at me—but I think he's taking your break-up really hard. Especially when he thinks you're seeing someone else."  
  
"Why do you guys insist that? 18 and Goku say the same thing. Chi-Chi and Krillin and Maris never say that."  
  
"Well I think its fair to say we know him better. We've all talked about it and we think he—"  
  
"You think he's in love with me," Bulma groaned, rolling her eyes. "And I think you're all ridiculous. How can you think he could love anyone? Especially me."  
  
"What do you mean, especially you?"  
  
"He seemed pretty insistent on hurting me."  
  
"He was scared, Bulma. He's never felt love for another person before. Not really. I mean, of course he loves his mother and he loved his father, but I mean true love. And before you say it, no, I'm not trying to justify the way he hurt you. I'm just trying to help you understand him."  
  
"Understand him? I think I have a grasp on who he is pretty well. Besides, you're just telling me what you think. You don't know for sure. And I think you're all insane to think that. He loves himself too much to love another person."  
  
"Look, I'm sorry, but that's how I perceive his behavior lately. He's never acted this way and it's only been since your break-up. The morning after he cheated on you, he got on the bus fuming mad and wouldn't talk to anyone until 18 confronted him about where he was the night before. Usually after he's been with someone he won't shut up about it."  
  
"Can we please talk about something else?" Bulma sighed. But immediately after a wide smile graced her lips. "Guess what."  
  
"What?"  
  
"I found out the sex of the baby today."  
  
"Really!? Kami, tell me."  
  
"It's a boy!" she all but cheered. "Just like Chi's baby. We're going to have boys together!"  
  
"That's great!" 17 sighed happily. "When you tell Vegeta he might actually not be completely pissed." And as soon as the words passed his lips, he knew they were wrong. That was not what she needed to hear right then.  
  
"Might not be completely pissed?" Bulma scoffed. "If he's in the least bit angry then he has more problems than a son to raise."  
  
"I'm sorry, B, but I can't pretend that you not telling him his right. No matter what he's done he deserves to know you're pregnant. I don't see how you could have gone this long without telling him. Aren't you anxious to see his reaction? If nothing more than to get a rise out of him?"  
  
"17, please. I really, really don't want to talk about this. I told you, I've been trying to tell him but I just can't right now. I promised 18 I'd tell him before I started to show, and that's as good as I can do right now. If I don't tell him before then, 18 is going to. So he'll find out before the baby is born either way. You can all relax."  
  
"Fine," 17 sighed. "I'll drop it."  
  
"Thank you."  
  
"So…What have you been up to this week?"  
  
"Not much. School, work, doctor's. I went on a date with Omezo and—"  
  
"A real date?"  
  
"Kami no," Bulma laughed. "A mock date, of course. But I had a much better time than I thought I would. I've always seen him walking around school and never thought twice. Who knew jocks had personalities. Or such great ones. He's really starting to grow on me."  
  
"Grow on you like you like him? To actually date him, like him?"  
  
"Calm down, 17. No, I mean I'm getting to know the guy that's my boyfriend to the public. Which I should have done before, but it works this way too. I mean, shouldn't he be a good guy? I don't think 18 had jerks in mind when she came to me with the idea. And I don't think you'd like me hanging around another Vegeta. Vegeta you know, but a guy just like him that you and 18 and Goku have no control over, well, you guys would really have a reason to freak out."  
  
"I know, I know," he sighed. "It's just that when you and Vegeta got together I thought it was really for real. He's had girlfriends in the past, but something was different about your relationship."  
  
"If you could call it that," she said under her breath.  
  
"I mean it. He was a completely different person for a month. He was the most civil he's been with his mom in a long time. He helped Goku out with shopping for the baby. But then that night on tour he just snapped at us for no reason and stormed off the bus. All he said was he'd be back in time to leave…If he didn't fall in love with you then at least your friendship meant something to him."  
  
"That's slightly more believable. Look, I'll tell you what. When he gets in, if its not too late, have him give me a call. I'm not promising to tell him about the baby, but I would like to talk to him since I haven't since you guys left last week."  
  
"Can you do me one favor?"  
  
"Hmm?"  
  
"Try not to mention Omezo. And if he brings it up, don't gloat about it."  
  
"I should have a right to—"  
  
"Right now you're keeping him from his child. I think that's enough."  
  
Bulma sighed deeply, but she knew he was right. After all, they were supposed to be friends now. What kind of friends rub salt in wounds?  
  
"Ok. I promise I won't. I just hope he doesn't get down my throat about it. I don't think it's any of his concern."  
  
"You made it his concern when you told us not to tell him Omezo was a fake. Just be nice and I'll make him promise to do the same."  
  
"Aww, what great friends we are," she laughed. "Having to promise to bite our tongues just to have a normal conversation. I'm going to kill my father for this."  
  
"What'd you mean?"  
  
"If he didn't give me those tickets I would have never met Vegeta and none of this would be happening."  
  
"Yeah, but then you wouldn't have met me, or 18, or Goku either."  
  
"And you wouldn't have met Maris."  
  
"I wasn't going to say that."  
  
"I know. But you were thinking it."  
  
A heavy blush crept across 17's cheeks and he was glad it was only a phone conversation.  
  
"Well, I've got to get going. Me and Goku have some things to go over tonight. I'll call in a week or so to check in. Give Maris a hug for me tomorrow."  
  
"Right. Good luck with the tour."  
  
"Good luck with Vegeta."  
  
"Thanks. I'll need it."  
  
ooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooo  
  
Bulma stood naked in front of the full-length mirror in her bedroom. She looked the same from the front, but when she turned to the side the slightest bump could be seen. Placing her hands on her belly, she let out a soft sigh. Today was the first day she would have to face Vegeta after beginning to show. At school she made sure her already baggy clothes were even baggier to compensate for the small belly. But she doubted that trick would work on Vegeta. Even Omezo had noticed the other day when she hugged him good-bye outside a café. His eyes went wide for a moment and he barely spoke a word the rest of the day.  
  
"You can do this Bulma," she said angrily to her reflection. "You can build a motorcycle in two days, this shouldn't be a problem."  
  
She shook her head sorrowfully and went to dress, the phone conversation she'd had earlier with Vegeta on a constant loop in her mind. He knew something was wrong. Her voice must have been shaking. She was shaking right now just thinking about it.  
  
"I thought everyone was coming over tonight," Vegeta said, confused. "Shouldn't you be in school right now?"  
  
"I took the day off," Bulma said, curling the phone cord around her finger. "Please just come over at noon. We can have lunch and talk."  
  
"Why can't you just tell me over the phone?"  
  
"Tell you what?"  
  
"Ok. Have it your way."  
  
Bulma took a deep breath as she opened her bedroom door and started for the living room. In ten minutes Vegeta would be here, and she would have to break the news to him and explain why she'd waited this long to tell him. She was almost down the stairs when, in her nervousness, she tripped on the last step and almost fell to the floor. Luckily the wall extended slightly farther than the staircase and she found her balance before it was too late.  
  
"Great," she sighed. "Just how I wanted to start the day."  
  
ooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooo  
  
Vegeta paced the length of his room, glancing at the clock every few seconds to check the time. It was 11:40. In twenty minutes he was expected at Bulma's and he didn't know if he could make it. For the entire trip to the states the only thing he could thing of was her; her bright blue eyes, her flowing aqua hair, the way she dressed, the way her nose wrinkled when he annoyed her. And the more he thought about her, the more distracted he became and the worse the shows got. By the end of the tour he was so wound up that the crowd actually booed him. He recovered, thankfully, but he would never forget the feeling.  
  
"Kami," he groaned as he slipped on his boots and headed downstairs. His mother stood at the bottom of the stairs, as if she knew he'd be coming down at that moment.  
  
"Going to Bulma's?" she asked, a sly grin on her features. Bulma had called her before calling Vegeta and told her she planned to tell him today.  
  
"Eavesdropping is so unflattering," he spat, pushing by her. "No wonder you haven't dated since dad died."  
  
The moment he got in his car he knew he'd crossed the line. Slowly he got back out, met his mother in the den, and handed her the pamphlet he'd been carrying around since the airport the night before.  
  
"I'll explain when I get back."  
  
oooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooo  
  
"What!?" Bulma snapped, shooting to her feet. "I'm sorry. I thought you just said you couldn't be friends with me anymore. I must have heard wrong, because I know you wouldn't be that cruel and stupid."  
  
Vegeta hung his head and sighed, content to stay seated.  
  
"Tell me you're playing a cruel joke and I'll laugh."  
  
"Woman, it isn't a joke. I've thought of nothing but you since I left a month ago and it has to stop. Our friendship is meaningless."  
  
Bulma narrowed her eyes more and crossed her arms over her chest. And they had had such a nice lunch a few moments ago. She'd brought him into the living room to give him the news, but instead he decided to ruin her life—again.  
  
"Meaningless? Alright. I'll play your game. But if it's so meaningless then why did you agree to be friends again? I didn't force you to say yes. Was this another sick plan? Another game? Another way to drag me along and hurt me?" Bulma stopped and pointed to the door. "Just get out. I'm under enough stress as it is; I do NOT need to deal with this right now. I'll discuss it with you later."  
  
"You don't understand," Vegeta sighed, and this time he did stand. "I'm doing you a favor. I'm going against my instincts and I'm helping you."  
  
"Is that supposed to make me feel better?" she seethed, though the anger was slowly leaving her voice. She couldn't believe this was happening—again.  
  
"Do you remember that night I left you? A few days after New Year's."  
  
"Of course. Getting crushed tends to leave an impression."  
  
"And you remember what I told you?"  
  
"You said you were leaving me so you didn't hurt me, but if that were true then you wouldn't have come back. You wouldn't have ruined my life."  
  
"Ruined your life? Bulma, we dated for six weeks."  
  
"There's so much you don't know and couldn't begin to understand. Get out before I call the police. I'm sure they'd believe me over you."  
  
"Fine," Vegeta sighed and headed for the door. She followed him, only to make sure he left and didn't hang around in her driveway, waiting to continue the fight. If there was one thing she couldn't stand it was having to listen to someone who she knew was wrong. When they reached the front porch he turned and looked her directly in the eyes. "I'm sorry," he said. He reached up to touch her face, but she immediately slapped his hand away.  
  
"Oh Vegeta," she sighed, her tone that of mock pity. Her anger was returning. "How unlikely of you, but you must never apologize for something you meant to do."  
  
"That's not why I'm sorry." His voice was lower and more distant. He was laying everything he had out in the open, and for once pride was nowhere to behold.  
  
"What for then?"  
  
"For you being the one that finally opened my eyes. You were never supposed to get hurt, and I was never meant to know you." He turned to leave, and Bulma didn't even consider stopping him. Her anger blinded her need, and she needed him.  
  
Let him go. Just let him go.  
  
"I took your advice," he said over his shoulder. "I'm taking my mother to Europe. Just me and her. I plan to forget you there." He opened his car door and climbed in, not giving her a second glance as he started the engine and drove away.  
  
"By the way," she whispered, staring at the space he had once occupied, tearing freely rolling down her cheeks, "I'm pregnant…"  
  
ooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooo  
  
Vegeta took a deep breath in an attempt to calm his nerves, though he only managed to put more strain on them. Beside him his mother read a magazine, her eyes darting in his direction every few seconds. An hour ago she'd jumped down his throat for leaving Bulma, and now, after having calmed down, they were on a plane for France. She couldn't remember a time when she'd been this happy and sad at the same time.  
  
"Do you need to say something?" she finally asked, putting her magazine back into its holder.  
  
"What makes you say that?" His voice was almost trembling. Only one other time had he acted this way.  
  
"Please, Vegeta, you know I'm always here for you. I love you and I want what's best for you, and while that isn't escaping to Europe, I'm here one hundred percent. I'll love you know matter what."  
  
"Like dad," he sighed, his eyes glued to the evening sky.  
  
"Yes, like your father. No other man can take his place. That's why dating was never an option for me."  
  
"You know—"  
  
"I know. Now tell me what you're thinking."  
  
Vegeta sighed deeply and looked at his mother, the sadness in his eyes so deep it almost made her cry looking at him.  
  
"I ruined my life," he whispered, his face finally shedding its hard outer layer. "But that doesn't matter…because I ruined her life and I can't undo that."  
  
Mrs. Ouji gasped silently in an effort to calm her sadness. She reached over and pulled her son to her, resting his head on her shoulder. To her complete surprise he allowed her to do this, even going so far as to clutch her arm. And then, for the first time since his father's death, he accepted comfort…and cried.  
  
ooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooo  
  
---Chapter 8! :) I promise that Vegeta will find out in the next chapter. You can count on it. This is exactly how I wanted it to be set up, and now that it is I can finally have Vegeta find out about his little bundle of joy. So hold on! Heehee…I really hope you all liked that chapter. I know, I know, they aren't friends, but how reliable is Vegeta's word? LOL. Don't worry, everything will work out for the best in the end.  
  
REVIEW!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! (Reviews=More Chapters)  
  
Next time: Vegeta and his mother go to Europe, and 18 pays a visit to Bulma…Things aren't looking so good.  
  
Note: Sorry for the long wait, but I was out of town for a few days. Hopefully I can get this story close to done before I go to college in 2 weeks…Ahhhh! College! Someone put me out of my misery!  
  
Note2: Don't worry about Vegeta's OOC-ness. He'll be back to normal in the next chapter…Everyone breaks down sometimes. 


	9. The Truth Shall Make You Mad

Last time:  
  
"I ruined my life," he whispered, his face finally shedding its hard outer layer. "But that doesn't matter…because I ruined her life and I can't undo that."  
  
Mrs. Ouji gasped silently in an effort to calm her sadness. She reached over and pulled her son to her, resting his head on her shoulder. To her complete surprise he allowed her to do this, even going so far as to clutch her arm. And then, for the first time since his father's death, he accepted comfort…and cried.  
  
oooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooo  
  
Mr. Hakaru droned on in front of the class, his point lost to those still listening. He had a tendency to ramble on in and effort to make his advanced math classes more interesting and understandable. Bulma found it boring either way and usually ended up napping through second and fifth period. Her friends thought she was crazy taking the two hardest math classes the school offered, but then again they never did understand her capacity for knowledge. It was like coloring inside the lines, and most of the time she ended up re-explaining a problem to the class in a way they could understand. Now, however, it was more than boredom that kept her mind astray.  
  
"Miss Briefs," Mr. Hakaru snapped, giving her desk a hard rap with a ruler. "Would you mind waking up and solving the problem on the board?"  
  
Bulma rolled her eyes and went to the board. He was always doing this to her, mostly due to the fact that she was better qualified to teach the class than he was. He was jealous and it burned him that a mere student could question his authority in such a way.  
  
"Not quite," Mr. Hakaru said, chuckling softly. "You forgot one very important element. I would hate to see that kind of math cause a machine to malfunction and hurt innocent people."  
  
"What are you talking about?" Bulma sighed. "There's nothing wrong with my math."  
  
Mr. Hakaru smirked devilishly, reminding her instantly of Vegeta, and advanced towards the board. He unfolded his arms and smacked the ruler in the center of the problem.  
  
"I don't see anything."  
  
"This," he said, "is the wrong coefficient. You just vaporized an entire building."  
  
Bulma glared heavily at her teacher for a moment, then studied the problem. She wasn't seeing what he was apparently seeing. But, just as she was about to take her seat, she caught it. Of course! It was all wrong and she hadn't noticed.  
  
Slowly she brought her fingers to her lips, her other hand hugging her belly. The entire class grimaced and groaned as she flew at the trashcan and emptied her breakfast into it. She sighed deeply and slid to the floor. It had been over a week since she'd vomited. She thought it was all over.  
  
The bell rang moments later and students began to file out. Most chose to not look in her direction for fear of getting nauseous themselves, though when Bulma finally looked up she saw a few people staring at her in confusion as they passed. One girl inparticular caught her attention. As she walked by she wrinkled her nose and was almost out the door, but then back tracked a few steps and her eyes widened. She stared directly at Bulma for a few very long seconds, then smirked and walked out. Bulma didn't know what to make of it, and was about to stand, when Mr. Hakaru's shadow loomed over her.  
  
"You might want to cover that up," he snarled, pointing towards her stomach. Bulma only glared hard until he walked to his desk on the other side of the room, at which point she looked down to see what he'd been referring to. And, to her complete horror, she saw that her nearly-five-month-pregnant belly was poking out, her shirt having come up slightly in her haste to sit and rest.  
  
"You don't seem too surprised," Bulma snapped, pulling her shirt down and marching over to Mr. Hakaru's desk. He rolled his eyes and went about his work. "Well?"  
  
"Why would I be?" he snapped back. "When a student gets excused from class for the nurse as much as you do it usually draws attention. Because you're my student and are entrusted in my care—" Bulma wrinkled her nose at his sarcasm. "—I have a right to know why you are missing my classes."  
  
"Like I need to be here to pass, you nosey prick."  
  
"Temper, Miss Briefs. You don't want to have detention with me AGAIN, do you? You know that neither of us would enjoy that very much."  
  
"You're right," she said, taking a deep breath to calm herself. At least she was comforted by the fact that he was bound by law to keep her secret to himself. She turned on her heel and headed to lunch, though stopped at the door, unable to help herself. "I could stay after though if you need my help, you know, with the difficult equations. I know how hard they can be for amateurs like you."  
  
ooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooo  
  
"Geez, what took you so long?" Maris asked as Bulma sat beside her at the lunch table. "We've been waiting forever."  
  
"Nothing," Bulma sighed. "Just got into a little fight with Mr. Thinks-He-Knows-Everything."  
  
"Did he give you detention again?" Chi-Chi asked.  
  
"No, not this time. I think its safe to say I won't be staying after anymore this year. I mean, we have like two weeks left until finals and we're done. I think we both want to spend that time celebrating the fact we won't see each other again…Stupid asshole."  
  
"Kami, I still can't believe you act that way with a teacher," Maris said. "I thought you were going to get expelled last week when you called him a know-nothing sleazebag in the middle of the hall."  
  
"Yeah," Bulma laughed. "Me too. I'm lucky none of the other teachers like him either."  
  
"Hey Briefs!" yelled a voice from across the cafeteria. The entire table, along with the rest of the room, looked up and at the girl with long brown hair. It was the girl from her math class, and without knowing a thing about her, Bulma knew exactly why she'd called her. "I guess you and Mau really do do everything together!" the girl laughed, then disappeared into her group of friends and exited the cafeteria.  
  
"What was that all about?" Krillin asked, coming back from the bathroom. "Why was SHE talking to you?"  
  
"Oh Kami," Bulma groaned, putting her head down and covering it with her arms. Nothing good could possibly come from that.  
  
ooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooo  
  
Vegeta grimaced as the icy liquor went down his throat, though the sting was just what he needed. His mother had been gone for a few hours now, shopping and taking in the sites of Rome, the third stop on their European tour. It had been nearly a month since Vegeta up and left. To avoid confrontation with Jun or his band mates, he left his cellular phone and beeper at home and advised his mother to do the same. No doubt they were going crazy without him, as they always did. Bulma had surely told them by now where they'd gone.  
  
He frowned at the thought of her, the reason he'd called room service for the alcohol in the first place. For the life of him he couldn't figure out why she—of all people—was constantly on his mind. He could think of a million and one women who were more bearable than Bulma, but, inevitably, she always found her way into his mind and managed to sour his mood.  
  
A knock at the door brought him back to reality, and he set down his glass and answered it.  
  
"The magazines and newspapers you ordered, sir," said a young man with short blonde hair in Italian.  
  
"Right," Vegeta said, grabbing them. He tipped the servant a few hundred dollars and went into the living room. The magazines and papers were a day old, however, for he ordered ones from Japan to keep up on events. Unfortunately, with his luck, Bulma managed to get herself on the cover of at least one of the magazines every few days.  
  
Today she was on the cover of two of the magazines and the front page of both newspapers. Omezo, who was usually at her side, was nowhere in sight. One of the magazines had both Bulma and Chi-Chi coming out of a clinic, and so he tossed it aside. Nothing he didn't already know. It was the other magazine and the papers that caught his attention. Something about Bulma was different, the angle at which the picture was taken perhaps. But then, as his eyes finally landed on the headline, he understood and his mind went blank.  
  
"Kami no," he whispered, the periodicals slipping from his fingers.  
  
Mrs. Ouji walked in just in time to catch her son as he fell off the couch. She flung her bags away and caught his head just before it collided with the coffee table. She didn't need to ask what happened. Last night she received a call from 18, having secretly kept her cell phone and turned the ringer off.  
  
"I'm so sorry you had to find out like this," Mrs. Ouji sighed, patting her unconscious son's forehead. "But I'm so glad you finally know."  
  
ooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooo  
  
Bulma looked up from her book, confused. The doorbell was ringing, but everyone she knew was busy today. She shrugged her shoulders and answered the door, taking a step back when she saw who it was.  
  
"18," Bulma said, holding her hand to her chest. "I thought you and Krillin had plans."  
  
"What I have to say won't take long," 18 replied icily. Bulma frowned and went back to her seat. 18 was content to stand.  
  
"Can I get you anything?"  
  
"You made promise," 18 snapped. "And you broke that promise."  
  
"18, I—"  
  
"You what? You couldn't tell him? You couldn't find the words? The moment wasn't right? What could have possibly made you keep the truth from him for this long? It's his baby too, for Kami's sake! If you need help, try this: I'm pregnant with your baby, Vegeta!"  
  
"18, please! Let me talk!"  
  
18 crossed her arms and glared, but said nothing.  
  
"I called him over the day he left to tell him, honest. And I tried, but before I could he told me he didn't want to be friends anymore and we fought and he left. I didn't have a chance to tell him before he drove away. And then I called his cell, but he wouldn't pick up."  
  
"What about going to his house? Its not like he could leave without his mother when he took her with him!"  
  
"Why are you so angry, anyway?" Bulma bit back. "I didn't force you to not tell him. You've been his friend longer than you've been mine. You could have easily told him and saved us this grief."  
  
"No," 18 hissed. "You could have told him. Besides, I don't break promises."  
  
"I didn't either! I tried and it was his fault I couldn't tell him!"  
  
"Oh really? What about your clothes?"  
  
"What do you mean, what about my clothes?"  
  
"Bulma Briefs! You know damn well what I mean! You've been wearing your clothes extra baggy ever since you started to show! No one had any idea you were showing this much until last week, so you broke your promise and you lied. And now Vegeta has to find out from a magazine!"  
  
"What are you talking about?"  
  
18 reached into her back pocket and threw a magazine on the table in front of Bulma. She flinched, but immediately grabbed it and gasped.  
  
"Kuso," she swore, thumbing to the article. She skimmed it for a moment then leaned back and sighed.  
  
"Every time we go on tour he has Japanese magazines and newspapers shipped to his hotel rooms. No doubt he's on his way home right now to confront you, and you better have a better story than the one you just fed me, because I'm being nice."  
  
Bulma tried to focus on 18's words, but they faded as soon as they left her lips. Of course she knew that he ordered the magazines, she wasn't stupid. Every Green Dragon fan knew that. And now, after all she'd been through, she couldn't have the privilege of telling Vegeta in person. She'd waited too long and now it was too late. Whatever sort of relationship they'd had left before he went to Europe was completely shattered now.  
  
So much for mending bridges before the baby was born.  
  
"What're you going to do?" 18 asked after a few moments of silence. "You know he's coming here as soon as he gets off the plane."  
  
"I know," Bulma sighed. "I guess I deserve this…"  
  
"No you don't." 18 frowned and sidled up next to Bulma, wrapping her arms around her shoulders. "Look, I'm sorry I was so hard on you, and you're right, my relationship with Vegeta is very strong. I couldn't let this go without getting my anger out. I'm sorry I yelled."  
  
"It's alright. You have every right to and so does he."  
  
"Bulma, listen to yourself. No I don't and neither does Vegeta. I crossed the line and I'm sorry. Just because you didn't tell him doesn't mean you deserve this. Maybe you're right, maybe it is better he found out this way. Who knows, maybe it'll teach him that his actions have consequences."  
  
"I just wish I could have been able to tell him. It would have been a lot easier than to find out from some crappy picture…Stupid bitch."  
  
"What?"  
  
"This girl at school. She happened to notice my belly and made sure I knew she did. It was probably her who tipped off the press. They were supposed to be in Townsend looking for me and Omezo, not staking out the clinic. I thought I was safe."  
  
"Omezo does know about the baby, right?"  
  
"Of course he does. We're hugging all the time for candid shots. He knew a month ago. He's been sending me packets; baby clothes, toys, books. It's really sweet."  
  
"Damn," 18 sighed. "If I didn't know any better I'd think you two really were dating."  
  
"I know," Bulma laughed. "He's a great guy. I never knew I could have such a good time with a jock."  
  
"You're not falling for him, are you?"  
  
"No, of course not. He's just my pseudo boyfriend and my friend, nothing else. I don't think about him that way."  
  
"Well that's good. The last thing you need right now is a real boyfriend getting steamed when Vegeta comes stomping back."  
  
Bulma hung her head and looked away. "Do you really think he'll be that angry?"  
  
"It's Vegeta we're talking about, B. He would have been angry if you told him the second you found out. It's in his nature to be mad at what he can't control."  
  
"If you get a chance to get him alone can you try to tell him sorry for me?"  
  
"No problem."  
  
"One more thing."  
  
"Yeah?"  
  
A small smile came to Bulma's lips. "I think I finally decided on a name."  
  
oooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooo  
  
Goku, 17, and 18 sat on Bulma's front porch, their eyes darting towards the road every now and then, though mostly they talked about the band to keep their emotions calm. A few hours ago 18 received a call from Mrs. Ouji. She'd managed to slip away to the bathroom on the plane to make the call, warning them that she and Vegeta were on their way home, and he was none too pleased with Bulma.  
  
Inside, Bulma and the others waited nervously, each dealing with their stress in different ways. Bulma and Chi-Chi tried to keep themselves calm by discussing their pregnancies and what they did and did not have already. Bulma's mother had turned the bedroom next to hers into a nursery, and had filled it with the essentials, as well as other unnecessary items. Chi-Chi's father and uncle had been working on an addition to their home ever since the snow melted. If things kept going smoothly, the nursery and extra bathroom would be complete well before the arrival of the baby.  
  
"What do you think he'll do?" Krillin asked, catching everyone's attention. "You don't think he'd…hurt you."  
  
"Of course not," Bulma all but snapped. "He has SOME brains in that big head of his. Besides, Goku and the twins are planning to hold him back if he's too…jumpy."  
  
"Are you nervous?"  
  
But she didn't have time to answer, as 18's head popped in and said, "Get ready. He's almost to your driveway." She shut the door and the room went silent and all that could be heard was the slamming of a car door.  
  
ooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooo  
  
"Let me go!" Vegeta growled, kicking at his friends as they held his arms and tried to keep him outside. The plan was to calm him down some before he was allowed to see Bulma.  
  
"Please, let him go," Mrs. Ouji said. She'd watched them overpower him for as long as she could take. "He won't do anything stupid."  
  
"Sorry Mrs. O," 17 said, wincing as Vegeta landed a kick to his shin. "No can do. He needs to calm down before he sets foot in that house. The last thing we need his Bulma going into labor because of stress."  
  
"You should have told me!" Vegeta yelled, piercing their ears. "You all knew and you didn't tell me, so get your hands off me!"  
  
"Why? So you can storm in there and scare Bulma to death?" 18 snapped. "I don't think so Vegeta. Just take a deep breath and calm down. There's nothing you can do to change the situation, so stop fighting us. We'll let you go when you're ready to be civil."  
  
"With you people?" he scoffed. "That's rich."  
  
"And we should be civil with someone like you?"  
  
Everyone looked up to see Bulma standing on the front porch, only yards away from the struggle in her driveway.  
  
"Let him go," she said. "We're well past needing to have this conversation."  
  
oooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooo  
  
---Chapter 9!! Aww, I'm a stinker, huh? LOL. I always leave you people with horrible cliffhangers, but hey! At least Vegeta knows and you got to see his reaction. What you expected, huh? The reaction I mean. You didn't think I'd have him find out that way, did you?…Alas, I am so cruel to my pseudo characters.  
  
REVIEW!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! (Reviews-More Chapters)  
  
Next time: Bulma and Vegeta talk…gasp  
  
Note: In an effort to get this chapter out quicker I haven't revised it yet, so let the typos go! :P  
  
Note2: The beginning with the school stuff does have a point, in case anyone was wondering. I wanted to show you that Bulma was still obsessing over Vegeta (even though it might not have been slap-in-the-face obvious) and it was foreshadowing the magazine. 


	10. Harmless Obsession

Last time:  
  
Everyone looked up to see Bulma standing on the front porch, only yards away from the struggle in her driveway.  
  
"Let him go," she said. "We're well past needing to have this conversation."  
  
oooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooo  
  
"Can I get you anything?" Bulma asked, knowing exactly what the answer would be.  
  
Vegeta stood some ten feet away, his back against the refrigerator. She sat at the kitchen table, her hands instinctively on her ever-growing belly. He couldn't even look at her, though his temper had cooled some since the struggle in the front yard.  
  
"I didn't think so," she sighed. "Just thought I'd ask. You never know."  
  
"How long were you going to keep this from me?" he asked icily, his eyes seemingly glued on the stove. "How long have you been keeping it from me? Are you due tomorrow!?"  
  
"Please Vegeta, don't do this. You know exactly why I didn't tell you right away."  
  
"How long?"  
  
"I'll be five months next week."  
  
"Five months!" he baulked, looking at her for the first time since they were alone. "You knew when we were still together and you didn't tell me!"  
  
"I tried!" Bulma cried. "You don't know how hard I tried."  
  
"Not hard enough," he scoffed, turning back towards the stove.  
  
"I know…I know. I should have told you the second I found out, but you were leaving and I didn't want to ruin—"  
  
"Is that what you were doing in the bathroom that night?"  
  
She nodded solemnly, then squeaked out a yes.  
  
"This is unbelievable. This is not happening. I'm Vegeta fucking Ouji, for Kami's sake! This does not happen to people like me!"  
  
"Goku is like you, and he's in the same place you are."  
  
"No, Kakarot has known from the beginning. Not five months later." He turned sharply towards her and advanced at the table, stopping inches from her. She flinched, but stayed put. "What else don't I know? Maybe the kid isn't even mine. Maybe it's your new boy toy's. Maybe he isn't so new after all."  
  
"Shut up, Vegeta," Bulma spat. "Don't you dare put me in the same disgusting category as you. I would never sink as low as to cheat on someone. And as for things you don't know, the baby is a boy and his name is Trunks. My due date is October 6th and I want to die, knowing that he has half of your genes!"  
  
Vegeta was about to retort, when the full weight of her words sunk in. A boy. Trunks. October 6th. Kami, they'd been right all along. Their lives were ruined.  
  
"The reason you wanted to reconcile," he said after a long pause.  
  
"Yes. It was because of the baby."  
  
"Not for the reasons you said."  
  
"You broke my heart, Vegeta." Her voice was softer now. "Things like that can never be fixed. If I could have it my way I'd never have to see you again…Not because I don't want to, but because when I look at you I can't forget what we had, no matter how small or short. It was real for that time and what you did is always going to hurt."  
  
"Why you?" he sighed, shaking his head.  
  
Bulma stood and pulled him into a hug. It was the only thing she could think to do, and it didn't matter in that moment what he'd done, because she needed comfort and she needed him. When she released him, his eyes held hers in such a way that she couldn't break the gaze. Yamcha had looked at her that way once and she would never forget it.  
  
"Just let me do it," he said, breaking the unbearable silence.  
  
"Do what?"  
  
"This." He placed his hands gently on her face and pulled their heads together, their lips connecting and sending shivers down Bulma's spine. How was she supposed to get over him when he kept doing that? But she wasn't thinking about her pseudo boyfriend right now, or the fact that she was supposed to be hating the man that was kissing her. Her heart wanted Vegeta and in that moment she was willing to give it just that.  
  
"Please don't do that again," Bulma whispered, resting her head on his shoulder. She didn't even try to fight the tears this time. "I have to get over you."  
  
"Why?" He was stroking her hair now, the feeling of her belly strange but nice against him. If they had to spend the rest of their lives hating each other, then he wanted these last few moments his way. This way. With her in his arms, and their child between them.  
  
"Because, Vegeta, if I can't be with you then I don't want to love you. I can't."  
  
"Then be with me."  
  
"Oh Vegeta," she laughed bitterly. "Just shut up and hug me."  
  
"What about the baby?" he asked.  
  
"What about him?"  
  
"Am I going to be his dad or his father?"  
  
"Both," she sighed, hugging him just a little tighter.  
  
"And us?"  
  
"We're enemies when we leave this room," she said sadly, and Vegeta nodded, knowing it was inevitable.  
  
oooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooo  
  
"Go away," Vegeta grunted, turning away from the door, his book cradled in his arms as he read.  
  
The knocking persisted.  
  
"I said, go away."  
  
"Come on Vegeta," 18 urged through the door. "We're all really sorry. You can't seriously be that mad."  
  
"I know," 17 added. "You sort of deserved this after what you did to Bulma."  
  
Vegeta's head suddenly appeared before his band mates, causing them all to jump back. His mother, who stood behind them all, couldn't decide whether she wanted to glare or smile. Vegeta glared.  
  
"When I want to be around traitors I'll call you," he hissed, about to slam the door, when 18 flung out her arm and blocked his way.  
  
"You can't stay mad forever, you know. Besides, Jun's been wanting to see us all. Especially you. She doesn't appreciate you flying off to Europe again."  
  
"And I don't appreciate being the last to know I'm going to be a father. I bet Jun even knew, huh? She was probably having a ball keeping it from me, too. Stupid wench."  
  
"Vegeta," Goku said. "Whether you're mad at us or not you still need to see Jun. Now that the world knows Bulma is pregnant, they're going to know you're the father. We need a strategy."  
  
"Correction," Vegeta said. "You need a strategy. I'm out."  
  
"Out? Out of what?"  
  
"The band, your lives, the public eye. Take your pick. I'm sick of this life, and I'm sick of all of you."  
  
"You can't do that!" 18 snapped, wanting nothing more than to strangle him.  
  
"Like hell I can't!"  
  
"She's right," 17 said, smiling. "You can't. We all signed the new contract last month. Three more tours and two more albums, minimum."  
  
This time when Vegeta tried to slam the door he was successful.  
  
ooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooo  
  
Bulma awoke with a start, her hands instantly going for her belly, tears staining her cheeks. She looked frantically around the room, her eyes straining in the darkness. Her heart was pounding so loudly she could hear it.  
  
Without thinking, she grabbed the phone and dialed the first number that came to mind.  
  
"Hello?" came a groggy, angry voice.  
  
"Vegeta," she cried softly, her blankets pulled up to her as if for protection.  
  
"Woman?" His sleepiness quickly lifted.  
  
"I-I-I…Oh Kami…I just had the worst nightmare."  
  
On the other end Vegeta sighed with relief. And he thought it was something serious.  
  
"I went into labor," she whimpered. "But I wasn't ready yet and the baby he…he was so small and weak and he wasn't even strong enough to cry!"  
  
"Do you need me to come over or something?" he asked, regretting the words the moment they passed his lips. Why wasn't she calling her new boyfriend? And what happened to them being enemies? For three days he'd heard nothing from her, and now she's crying on the phone at two in the morning because of a silly nightmare.  
  
"No," she sighed. "No. I can't keep trying to rebuild something with you. I'm sorry. I shouldn't have called. I'm screwing everything up. We're not meant to have any kind of a relationship and my heart refuses to believe that. Just forget I called. Good night."  
  
The line went dead before he had a chance to respond. He hung up the phone, settled back into his warm blankets, and closed his eyes. But sleep wouldn't come.  
  
Angrily he got out of bed, slipped on his boots, and trudged downstairs to his car. So what if they shouldn't see each other. Besides, no one had to know he went over. He'd be gone before morning.  
  
As he was backing out of the driveway he had second thoughts, but quickly dismissed them. He wanted to see her and he wasn't about to let her get in the way of that. He'd never felt so strongly about someone in all his life, and, at that exact moment, he vowed he would do anything in his power to win her back. She was his and no one would stop him.  
  
ooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooo  
  
"Vegeta!" Bulma screeched, scrambling out of bed and away from him. She'd been having such a peaceful dream in contrast to her last one, only to wake up and nearly have a heart attack when she found someone in her bed with her. "What the hell do you think you're doing!"  
  
He stepped back, looking almost hurt, but his anger quickly took over.  
  
"You were practically begging me to come over when you called, woman! Kami! I do what you want and you bitch. Can I do nothing right?"  
  
"Vegeta, what are you talking about? I said NOT to come over. I overreacted with the nightmare. I get mood swings, you know. It's part of being pregnant. Plus, that dream really freaked me out."  
  
"You can't say you didn't want me here."  
  
"Yes I can, Vegeta," she sighed, shaking her head slightly. "I meant it when I said we had to be enemies. I didn't just mean in front of everyone else. We have to be enemies for ourselves. I can't go on loving you, so I have to hate you instead. It's the only way I can go on and have a real life. Please don't take that from me."  
  
"But you love me, you said it right there," Vegeta protested angrily, taking a few very bold steps forward, until there was only about a foot between them. "Just be with me. Stop fighting yourself. You're only going to hurt more."  
  
"You're the only person who's hurt me, Vegeta," she said icily. "Now, if you don't mind, I'd like to get some sleep. I have a final tomorrow and I don't want to fail because I fell asleep halfway through it."  
  
"Why are you doing this!" he snapped, grabbing her almost violently by the arms. For a split second Bulma feared for her baby, but one look his eyes told her she was safe, physically. "When I took you to Europe you resisted me too. In the desert you wanted to be with me and I was the one who said no. Now you're saying no and we both want it."  
  
"No," she said through her teeth, as she wriggled out of his grasp. "You're the one who wants to be with me. I don't want you. Don't you get it, Vegeta? You're an idea. You're intangible. I want the past and that's something I can never have back. The only reason I still love you is because you'll always be Vegeta. You were when I loved you and you'll never stop being this way. What's changed is what you did, and that's why I can honestly say that I don't want you back. Ever."  
  
"You're lying!" He grabbed her arms once again, and pulled to her him, forcing his lips on her. She didn't hesitate for a second and shoved him back, giving him a hard slap across the face for good measure.  
  
"Look, Vegeta. I don't know what's gotten into you, but you need to forget about me as anything other than the mother of your son. That's all I am now. I don't care if you go off with a million other girls, so long as you're a good father to Trunks."  
  
"You can't do this," he said acidly. This time Bulma couldn't distinguish the look in his eyes. Now she was getting a little scared.  
  
"Please go home and get some sleep. I'll call you in a few days and we can take a trip to the doctor's."  
  
"You won't even consider it?"  
  
"Did you consider my feelings when you got in bed with that woman four months ago?"  
  
Vegeta nodded and headed for the door. Bulma held her breath until she heard him drive away, then broke down and cried into her pillow until she was exhausted.  
  
"I do want you," she whispered, hugging her belly. "Why did you have to hurt me like that?"  
  
oooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooo  
  
"He what!" 17 baulked, nearly dropping the engine part Bulma had asked him to hold. "You're kidding."  
  
"I wish I was," Bulma sighed. She poked her out from under the motorcycle and frowned. Her face was covered in grease, which normally would have made 17 laughed, if not for the drastic change in the conversation. "Ok, I think I'm ready for that now."  
  
17 leaned down and handed Bulma the part she needed, watching curiously as she put it in place, connected a few things, and stood up.  
  
"There. All done. Enjoy."  
  
"You didn't have to do this for me," he said, eyeing his beautiful new ride.  
  
"Oh come on. Like it's difficult. Besides, I work when I'm stressed, so inadvertently you helped me calm my nerves."  
  
"Speaking of nerves."  
  
"Yeah, I know. You're still on the Vegeta thing." She walked over to her sink and turned on the water to scrub her hands. "Shoot."  
  
"I'm really concerned about him."  
  
"Has he ever been put on medication?"  
  
"His mom tried, but he refused. Besides, what I mean is his behavior lately. Ever since you two broke up he's been less and less himself. And now this. He practically begged you to be his girlfriend again. He's never given a girl more than a few minutes to agree to go back to his room, but with you it's like his patience is infinite."  
  
"Patience?" Bulma laughed.  
  
"You know what I mean. You get to him in this way that I can't describe. It's like with you and your machines. You obsess over them until they're done. Until they're the way you want them."  
  
"You think Vegeta's obsessing over me?" she asked, arching an eyebrow. "Oh, 17. You come up with a lot of crazy stuff. I think you and Maris have been hanging out too much lately."  
  
"Why is that so hard to believe? Think about it."  
  
"I'm sorry, but you're just not making any sense to me. You can't possibly know what he's thinking because you said he's never been like this before, therefore he isn't being himself, and you know him the way he used to be, ergo you don't know him and don't know what's going on."  
  
"Sometimes I really hate how smart you are," 17 said through his teeth, though there was a hint of a laugh in his voice. "Get cleaned up. I'll buy you an ice cream."  
  
"Oh goodie! Can I have a cherry on top? Oh pretty please!"  
  
"I don't know how I can stand you sometimes," 17 sighed, shaking his head.  
  
"Oh stop." She slung her arm around his shoulder, giving him a hard kiss on the cheek. "You love me and you know it."  
  
"Yeah," he said. "But you sure as hell don't make it easy."  
  
oooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooo  
  
---Chapter 10! :) Wow. Am I amazing or what? :P Heehee. I'm really impressed with the way that chapter went. I got stuck halfway through, but then the nightmare idea came to me and it went from there. Now I'm on a roll and I know exactly what I want to do next.  
  
REVIEW!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! (Reviews=More Chapters)  
  
Next time: A whole lot more fun! :D  
  
Note: I'm not sure when the next chapter will be out, because I'm going to be busy Saturday and Sunday, so the next chapter may not be out until Monday or Tuesday, but try to bear with me. I have a lot to do in a short amount of time and I'm still getting these chapters done! I'm losing sleep so you better appreciate me :P 


	11. Graduation: Part I

Last time:  
  
"Oh stop." She slung her arm around his shoulder, giving him a hard kiss on the cheek. "You love me and you know it."  
  
"Yeah," he said. "But you sure as hell don't make it easy."  
  
ooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooo  
  
No one spoke for fear of saying the wrong thing. They'd been sitting this way for ten minutes now, and everyone's patience was growing thin.  
  
Jun tapped her pen on the desk, her shoulder cradling the phone. She'd been on it, and not saying a word, ever since they walked in. They were beginning to wonder if she even had a call, or was just stalling for time.  
  
"Great," Jun finally said, and hung up the phone.  
  
"What was that all about?" Vegeta asked rudely, sitting apart from the others.  
  
"I made a deal with one of the magazines that printed the story about Bulma. I'll give them the whole scoop if they only print stories I approve of from now on."  
  
"And how does Bulma feel about this?" 17 asked. "Did you even talk to her?"  
  
"Of course I did," Jun scoffed, offended. "I had her come in yesterday and sign a contract, just like I'm having the magazine sign one. Everyone is safe. Everyone is happy."  
  
"Everyone?" Vegeta said under his breath.  
  
"What? Did you not get what you wanted?" Goku snapped, startling everyone except for Vegeta. "Wasn't conning Bulma your goal? And you got that. Be satisfied and shut the hell up."  
  
"I don't believe anyone asked you to open your big mouth, Kakarot. What I do on my time is MY business. I don't need you poking your nose around. I get enough of that from my three mothers, I do NOT need it from you."  
  
"Excuse me?" Jun and 18 hissed at the same time.  
  
"We do not act like your mother," 18 said, wanting to slap him. "Just because you're mad that we didn't tell you about the baby doesn't mean you have to lash out at us at every turn. It's your own fault that these things are happening to you, not ours. If you opened your eyes for two seconds you might see that."  
  
"Would you settle down?" Jun sighed, rolling her eyes. "Just sign the damn contract and get the hell out of my office. It basically says that you agree with what I'm giving the magazine, which is a slight fabrication of the truth."  
  
"Meaning?"  
  
"Bulma became pregnant while with Vegeta and didn't know until after they were broken up. They decided not to get back together just because of a baby and are going to be in the child's life one hundred percent. Yadda, yadda, yadda. You get the point. Nothing the public can boo us for."  
  
They all nodded and agreed with the content of the article, then signed the paper. Vegeta was the first out the door, and 17, who had been itching to talk to him since he last saw Bulma, had to run to catch him before he was gone.  
  
"Vegeta!" 17 called, jogging towards him, just as he reached his car. "Wait up!"  
  
"What do you want?" Vegeta grumbled. The last thing he wanted to do was speak with someone who had kept the most important information of his life from him. It seemed that that's all those people wanted to do.  
  
"I need to talk to you. Just for a few minutes. Give me a ride home and we'll talk on the way."  
  
"No."  
  
"It's important, Vegeta."  
  
"I said—"  
  
"It's about Bulma."  
  
oooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooo  
  
"Kami!" Bulma sighed, her face beaming. "I cannot believe we graduate in less than two weeks. It's insane!"  
  
"Tell me about it," Chi-Chi said. "It feels like we just started the year. Hell, it feels like we just started high school and already we're leaving."  
  
"We're really going to have to grow up soon then," Krillin laughed, slinging his arms around Bulma and Maris's shoulders as they walked out towards the parking lot.  
  
"Next year is going to suck," Maris groaned, hanging her head. "I just started hanging out with you guys and now you're leaving. I have to spend a whole year alone. You guys better not forget about me."  
  
"Like we could," Chi-Chi said, sounding almost hurt. "You're like the missing part of our group we never knew we needed until you showed up at our door. Literally."  
  
Maris turned her head to hide her reddening cheeks. "So, are you guys having a graduation party some time?"  
  
"Of course we are," Bulma said. "Hmm…I wonder where we can have it."  
  
"Do we ever have parties anywhere other than Capsule Corp.?" Krillin asked.  
  
"Well, my place is the biggest. And we have a ballroom, and a giant yard, and a pool. Hell, it's like a mini-city in there. Sometimes I get lost just looking for my mom."  
  
"When are you going to have it?" Maris asked. "Graduation day? A week later?"  
  
"Same day. Duh. Don't you know us at all?" Bulma joked. "If we're going to have a big party, it's going to be THE party. Graduation day, and nearly the whole class is coming. With some obvious exceptions, of course."  
  
"Of course," she laughed. "Are you going to invite Vegeta?"  
  
The laughter suddenly stopped, and all eyes went from Maris to Bulma.  
  
"I don't think so," she sighed, averting her eyes. "I'm inviting Omezo and that would be really weird, even if we aren't actually going out. I don't want any fights. Just a nice party. No hassle, and with Vegeta there's always hassle."  
  
"He's going to feel pretty left out."  
  
"Vegeta?" she scoffed. "Feel? Well, if he's learned to do that this is the first I'm hearing of it."  
  
The group went quiet at Bulma's sudden change in tone, and didn't bring up Vegeta again.  
  
ooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooo  
  
"She told me what you did," 17 said, just barely able to buckle his seatbelt as Vegeta tore down the road.  
  
"What did I do?" Vegeta asked, knowing full well what he meant.  
  
"How you went over to her house in the middle of the night and scared the shit out of her."  
  
"So I startled her. Kami. It's not like I chased her with a knife."  
  
"Vegeta, she said she was actually scared of you. You were freaking her out with what you were saying. And then you grabbed her and she didn't know what you would do."  
  
"She thought I was going to hurt her?" Vegeta laughed. "Kami. That's ridiculous. I wanted her attention. She knows I would never hurt her."  
  
"Does she?"  
  
Vegeta only rolled his eyes.  
  
"Vegeta, listen. I'm saying this because you're one of my best friends. I don't think you should see Bulma anymore. At least not alone. If you have to see her for baby-related reasons then see her in public or make sure someone else is with you. I don't like the idea of you two being alone."  
  
"Why? Do you think we might end up popping out some more kids?"  
  
"No," 17 grunted, crossing his arms over his chest. "What happened the other night can't happen again, and this should prevent it. If you're not alone, then you can't act up so much."  
  
"Act up?"  
  
"Yes, act up."  
  
"What am I? Five?"  
  
"I don't know sometimes…Stop getting me off track. All I'm trying to say is leave her alone. You can't possibly understand what she's going through right now, Vegeta. She's hurting and she's scared and she still loves you, for some reason. But she needs to get over you and move on, but if you keep trying to get her back she's not going to be able to let you go."  
  
"Why are you so sure she needs to get over me?"  
  
"Because, Vegeta, she told me she did. She said she can't love you and hate you at the same time. She's going crazy and your mind games are just screwing her up even more."  
  
"And why can't we be together?"  
  
"What reason do you want?" 17 scoffed. "The obvious would be that you betrayed her trust and broke her heart, but there's always that you're unpredictable, ruthless, manipulative, cruel…Do I need to continue?"  
  
"I'm getting her back," Vegeta said firmly, just as he pulled into 17 and 18's driveway and killed the engine.  
  
"Why? So you can break her some more? Just leave me alone, Vegeta! She's hurt enough as it is, and your games are just adding to her pain. She doesn't want to hurt anymore…She doesn't want you anymore."  
  
"What makes you think I'll do the same thing again? Why can't I learn from my mistakes? I thought I was human too, 17."  
  
"I don't get it."  
  
"Nevermind," Vegeta sighed. "I don't even get it. She's turned me into someone else and I don't know what to think about that."  
  
"What are you trying to say, Vegeta?" 17 asked, with the slightest hint of a smile. "Do you love her?"  
  
"She opened my eyes," he said, avoiding the question. "I'm not going to bar hop every night looking for a lay anymore. I don't know why I thought I needed that before, but I don't. I hate the girls I leave with and I'm not going to do it anymore."  
  
"And Bulma made you see this?"  
  
"I'm going to be a father, you moron," Vegeta sneered. "What the hell else am I supposed to do? I don't want him like me. I hate me. Now get out of my car."  
  
"Are you still mad at me?"  
  
"I let you in my car, didn't I? Kami. Sometimes I don't understand how you people function."  
  
"Good-bye Vegeta. And remember what I said. She's been hurt enough."  
  
"Bye 17."  
  
oooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooo  
  
"Hey," Bulma said, her shoulder cradling her cellular phone. She picked up a small blue pair of baby pajamas, looked them over, and threw them in her cart.  
  
"What?" came Vegeta's annoyed voice at the other end. He hadn't spoken to her since that night a week ago, and couldn't figure why she'd be so cheery with him. He didn't care to find out either. Not only was he under extreme stress with the new baby developments, but just a few hours ago he found out Bulma was having an enormous graduation party…and he wasn't invited.  
  
"I'm out shopping for baby clothes and toys. Any preferences?"  
  
"I don't give a damn about stuff like that. Just don't put my boy in pink."  
  
"You're more hostile than usual," she observed, stopping her movements all together. "What's going on?"  
  
"I don't get you woman," he grunted and hung up the phone without any further explanation.  
  
oooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooo  
  
Bulma sat nervously on the bed in the doctor's office, her feet propped up, a thin sheet of paper covering her bottom half. Vegeta stood some five feet away, his back against the wall. He appeared to be dazing, but Bulma knew better. He had a lot on his mind and he considered none of it any of her business.  
  
She decided to ask anyway.  
  
"What's your deal lately?"  
  
He scoffed, but didn't answer. She figured as much.  
  
"Look, I know you know about my party, but I don't see how that could be it. We're not friends or lovers. We're hardly acquaintances. There's no reason for you to go. It'll only cause more problems then we already have and I don't know how many more of those I can take."  
  
"I think the majority of our problems started when you decided it was better for me to find out you were pregnant from a damn magazine."  
  
"Really?" Bulma snapped, turning sharply towards him. "And here I was thinking that it was something you did. How could I have been mistaken?"  
  
"You need to learn to forgive me for that, woman."  
  
"And why is that?"  
  
"Because, it was stupid and I regret it and if you don't our son isn't going to have quite the upbringing you hoped for."  
  
Bulma opened her mouth to object, when the sentence re-played itself in her mind. Regret? No. She must have heard wrong.  
  
"Come again?" she finally said after a considerable silence.  
  
"How are we feeling today?" came a voice from behind Bulma. She jumped and came face to face with her doctor.  
  
"I'm feeling fine, Dr. Kito," she said, recovering from the initial shock. She smoothed back her hair and forced a smile. Not that she didn't like her doctor, in fact she thought he was the best person to care for her, but she really needed to know what Vegeta had said.  
  
"Any unusual pain or sickness?"  
  
"I think it's unusual," she laughed. "But it's all just the same as always. More nausea than actual vomiting."  
  
"Great." He set down his clipboard and went for the sonogram machine. "Ok, now. Am I right to assume this young man is the father?"  
  
"Yes you are. His name is Vegeta."  
  
"Good morning, Vegeta. I'm Dr. Kito." He would have held out his hand if he wasn't so busy setting up for the sonogram.  
  
Vegeta only nodded then looked to Bulma.  
  
"Ok. Everything is set up. If you'd come a little closer, Vegeta, you can see your son."  
  
He stepped to the edge of Bulma's bed and grabbed her hand for effect. He didn't want this doctor to think he was a deadbeat, though the prospect of having a child sent the strangest sensation through his body. He couldn't decide what he wanted to feel, and therefore on the outside he was neutral.  
  
But the moment the tiny fetus came into view, his entire demeanor changed, along with the feelings he had towards the situation.  
  
"Vegeta?" Bulma said, noticing his sudden change. "Are you alright?"  
  
He nodded slightly, then turned to her and captured her lips. She didn't resist.  
  
The moment was perfect.  
  
oooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooo  
  
Bulma, Chi-Chi, and Krillin all let out a great sigh at once, threw off their silly square hats and plopped down on the couch in Bulma's living room. Maris was already there, and had been for a good half hour. Of course she'd been at graduation, but when it ended, she didn't stick around.  
  
"How was traffic?" Maris laughed.  
  
"Horrid," Chi-Chi scoffed. "Everyone was swarming and asking to sign yearbooks and by the time we got to the parking lot everyone else was there too. It took twenty minutes just to get out of the damn parking lot."  
  
"What time is everyone else getting here?"  
  
"An hour or so," Bulma sighed, and made herself more comfortable. "Damn, this heat is making me all the more uncomfortable."  
  
"Tell me about it," Chi-Chi laughed. "I don't want to go anywhere or do anything."  
  
Soon enough all the guests began to arrive, filling the living room. When it seemed there wasn't anywhere to walk anymore, Bulma herded the guests outside to the four enormous tents that were set up. One for food, one for entertainment, and two for people to sit. Green Dragon, minus one member, were the last to arrive.  
  
"Kami Bulma," Omezo laughed, looping his arm around her waist. "This is one hell of a party. I can't believe so many people are here."  
  
"Why thank you," she said with a wide grin. "Its just what I wanted."  
  
"Would you mind if we…go some place alone for a minute?" His tone was suddenly serious. "I really need to talk to you about something."  
  
"Umm, sure." She smiled uneasily and led him into the house and directly to the kitchen.  
  
oooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooo  
  
Across town Vegeta kept himself busy by sorting and examining all the items his mother had bought for the baby. There was so much there, so much to do, and only one thing on his mind.  
  
Without a second thought, he stood, slipped on his shoes, and left his room.  
  
"Where are you going?" his mother inquired as he passed through the kitchen.  
  
"Bulma's," he stated simply. "And don't you dare call and warn her. This is something I need to do."  
  
Mrs. Ouji only nodded and tried to hide her smile. There was only one reason he would go over there against Bulma's wishes and his better judgment.  
  
"Good luck," she whispered as he disappeared out the door.  
  
ooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooo  
  
---Chapter 11! :D Wow, that took me a lot longer than I hoped. Sorry! Don't kill me! :P But I had a lot to do and now I'm all settled at college and since I've had so much free time this weekend, I was able to finish this chapter. From now on I don't know when I'll be able to post chapters, seeing as I'm starting classes tomorrow, but hopefully I can get them out in reasonable time.  
  
REVIEW!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! (Reviews=More Chapters)  
  
Next time: Holy Kami! This one is going to be good, I promise you!  
  
Note: I know I jumped ahead a lot, but if I didn't I'd have two chapters that just dragged on. Plus, I really wanted to get everything set up for the next chapter, which I've been planning for a while :) 


	12. Graduation: Part II

Last time:  
  
Mrs. Ouji only nodded and tried to hide her smile. There was only one reason he would go over there against Bulma's wishes and his better judgment.  
  
"Good luck," she whispered as he disappeared out the door.  
  
oooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooo  
  
Omezo stood by the sink, his hands behind him on the counter, his eyes focused on some unknown object on the floor. Bulma sat quietly at the table, a million and one thoughts running through her mind. She knew she couldn't begin to guess at what he was thinking, but something told her the outcome wouldn't be so good.  
  
"How long have we known each other?" he asked, keeping his eyes on the floor.  
  
"About four months," Bulma said, narrowing her eyebrows. Where could he be going with that? "Why?"  
  
He sighed deeply, then advanced in her direction. Suddenly he was sitting in front of her, holding her hands, and looking directly into her eyes. A moment later their lips met, but Bulma pulled back as soon as she realized what was happening.  
  
"'Mez," she said when he didn't say anything. "Is everything ok?"  
  
"No," he sighed, leaning back roughly. "Bulma, I don't know how to say this—"  
  
"You found someone?"  
  
"I wish," he laughed, trying to ease the tension.  
  
"Just say it. Get it over with. You know you want to."  
  
"Alright." He took a deep breath, grabbed Bulma's hands again, and said, "I think I'm in love with you."  
  
Bulma gasped audibly, sat back, then burst into peels of laughter.  
  
"I'm sorry," she sighed, catching her breath. "You sounded so serious."  
  
"Bulma, I am serious. I've never felt this strongly about anyone. I…Look, when I first saw you there was something about you that caught my eye, but you were Bulma Briefs, Capsule Corp. Heiress. You know, do not speak unless spoken to."  
  
"'Mez—"  
  
"Let me finish…I never really gave you a second glance after that, but that day you pulled me aside changed my life. Maybe not right away, but over these past few months I've grown so attached to you. I don't want to lose you, and I know most of the time you were pretending—"  
  
"I never pretended to care about you."  
  
"The point is that I love you, and I don't want to just pretend to be your boyfriend anymore. I want to be with you for real."  
  
Bulma let out a great sigh and leaned forward, taking Omezo's hands. The moment the words passed his lips he knew what the answer would be. What the answer had to be.  
  
ooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooo  
  
Vegeta parked his car at the end of a long line of cars that stretched on for several blocks. At first he walked calmly towards the compound, but as the prospect of his intentions grew nearer, his strides turned into a jog, and soon he was running for Capsule Corp.  
  
When he arrived at the front door, he simply walked in, only to find that the house was completely silent. He soon realized where everyone could be, and walked around to the back of the house, where immediately the sound of laughter pierced his ears. He scanned the yard for Bulma's blue locks, but she seemed to be nowhere.  
  
"Hey you!" came a voice from behind him. He turned around and glared. It was Bulma's boyfriend, Omezo. It was the first time he'd seen the guy in person, and he wasn't any happier about it. "Green Dragon kid!"  
  
"I'm three feet from you," Vegeta snapped. "Lower your damn voice."  
  
"Why don't you back off, Dragon Boy?" Omezo slurred, the unmistakenable scent of vodka on his breath. "I don't remember Blooma inviting you to the party."  
  
"Her name is Bulma," Vegeta growled, summoning all his willpower to keep from punching the drunken mess before him. Where had she come across a guy like him? Getting drunk at a graduation party? "And why don't you stop drinking? This isn't a damn kegger."  
  
"What do you know?" Omezo shot back. "Besides playing crappy music, that is." A guttural laugh escaped his lips and he nearly tripped on the air as he stood in place. He righted himself just in time and stared directly into Vegeta's eyes. "What do you care, anyway? You cheated on the bitch."  
  
"That bitch you are referring to is YOUR girlfriend, jackass."  
  
"Girlfriend? Ha! That's what she thinks." Omezo leaned in, a little too close for Vegeta's comfort, and whispered in his ear as if they were old friends. "Do you have any idea how much publicity the boyfriend of Capsule Corp. Heiress gets? That other guy she dated was in the papers more times than her or her father. I'll be as famous as the Briefs!"  
  
"She'll see right through you," Vegeta hissed, pushing him away roughly. Across the crowded lawn Bulma's head snapped up.  
  
"The way she saw through you?" he laughed.  
  
"Yes," he sighed. "That's exactly right…but at least I know what I lost! You're too brain dead that you won't know what you've given up! You can't even begin to comprehend it!"  
  
"Oh, and Mr. High-and-Mighty does? What would you know about the broad?"  
  
"A whole hell of a lot more than she thinks," he said through his teeth.  
  
"Oh really?" Omezo asked stupidly.  
  
"I know her favorite color is yellow," he snapped. "And I know she hates flowers, except for sunflowers because they're so yellow!" He was shaking now, and his eyes were beginning to burn. But he held strong. "She cries at Science Fiction movies because she loves science so much! And she hates wearing pigtails because she thinks they make her head look lopsided!"  
  
"What the hell is going on?" Bulma snapped, finally reaching the source of all the yelling. "Vegeta! What—Get out off my property!"  
  
From seemingly nowhere, 17 and 18 grabbed Vegeta from behind and pulled him back. But he wasn't about to go that easily. He still had a few more things he needed to tell her new boyfriend, things he knew he'd never have been able to say without the drunken jerk, and needed desperately to get off his chest.  
  
"I know," he continued hoarsely, the tears now just beginning to break from his eyes, "that she can't stand odd numbers, because they aren't balanced! And that she loves animals so much that she won't even kill a stupid fly. I don't know her!?" He jerked himself free from the siblings' grasp and pointed rigidly at Omezo, who barely noticed, fighting all urges to punch him. The guy was lucky Bulma was right there. "I know her TOO much! More than I should, more than I want to, and nothing is going to make me forget that!"  
  
With one last glare, Vegeta turned and stomped away, unknowledgeable of the fact that Bulma was now crumpled on the ground and crying into Krillin's shirt.  
  
oooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooo  
  
"I don't even want to know what you thought you were doing," Bulma said, arms crossed as she paced her bedroom. Vegeta sat on her bed, staring out the window. He wasn't even hearing her words right now. He couldn't believe how bad things went and he was kicking himself for it now.  
  
About ten minutes after Vegeta had stormed off, Bulma found her bearings and went to look for him. She didn't have to go far, for he was sitting right on the front porch. She told him to go wait in her room and that she'd be up after she got Omezo home.  
  
"You had no right coming here, and especially not talking to Omezo."  
  
"Some boyfriend he is," Vegeta scoffed, not looking at her.  
  
"He's not my boyfriend, Vegeta."  
  
He looked up, confused.  
  
"18 had me hire a guy to pretend to be my boyfriend after me and you split. It was supposed to take the media focus off you and Green Dragon for a while so you could go about your business…Please don't be mad at 18. She was going to tell you, but I made her promise not to. I wouldn't agree unless she promised."  
  
"This whole time—"  
  
"Yes, this whole time…Don't think Omezo is a bad guy. He was really good to me."  
  
"He said he was only with you for media attention."  
  
"Vegeta, I know. I hired him. The reason he was so drunk and angry was because I turned him down. He told me he loved me today and I told him I couldn't be with him for real…I doubt I'll be seeing much of him anymore."  
  
"You do that to a lot of guys," he said angrily, then stood and went for the door. "How are we going to raise a baby, Bulma!?" Even from across the room, she could see his eyes were glistening. "You push me away and then you pull me back! You're a Kami damned yo-yo! All I want right now is to be with you and that's the furthest thing from your mind! You hate me just as much as I hate myself for what I did!…I know I can't undo it, but I don't want this shit anymore. If we're going to do this, and me and you can't be together, then we need to be civil, because I can't even concentrate on my work anymore!"  
  
"Civil!?" Bulma snapped back. "That's all I ever wanted from you, Vegeta! From the beginning that's all I wanted and now you want it too? Look, I don't know what the hell's been wrong with you, but it needs to stop. No more fighting. We're either civil, or we don't talk. It's that simple. We need to do this for the baby, so you better be on board!"  
  
"Woman, I am definitely on board!"  
  
"So when the hell does this start!?"  
  
Vegeta scowled deep, then walked over to Bulma and pulled her into a hug. The feel of her ever-growing stomach gave him a chill, but he held tight. Slowly he pulled back and placed a hand on her belly.  
  
"This is going to do some damage," Bulma whispered, her forehead still touching Vegeta's.  
  
"You're telling me," he scoffed.  
  
"I hate to pretend and make you pretend, but I refuse to let Trunks have a bad upbringing because of us…And, who knows, maybe you'll become a better person out of it."  
  
Vegeta let out a small laugh, kissed her quickly on the forehead, then left the room so she could return to her party.  
  
ooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooo  
  
"Can you hand me those eggs?" Mrs. Ouji said, pushing her bangs from her eyes. Vegeta got up from his stool, grabbed the three eggs that had wondered in different directions, and handed them to his mother. "Can you tell me what happened?"  
  
"Not now," he sighed with a heavy scowl as he watched her crack the eggs and put them in a bowl. "What're you making?"  
  
"Just some—"  
  
"You know that Omezo guy wasn't even her real boyfriend," he interrupted. Mrs. Ouji smiled. She knew he needed to talk about this. "She hired the moron to pretend to be her boyfriend because my great friend 18 asked her to. 18! Where does she get off doing that?"  
  
"What happened after you found out about the boyfriend?" she pressed.  
  
"We're going to be civil," he scoffed. "After all that's happened that's all she wants. Civility."  
  
"And you don't want that?" She held out her spoon to offer him a taste. He took the spoon, but only held it.  
  
"I want her, mother. I thought that was pretty damn obvious."  
  
"Only her?"  
  
"Yes, only her."  
  
"Tell me again why you two broke up," she said, taking the spoon back to continue stirring.  
  
"I made a mistake. I regret it and I'm trying to forget about it."  
  
"But why did you do that?"  
  
"I don't know why I do half the shit I do," he hissed, then sat back down on the stool. "All I know is that I didn't feel right with Bulma. It wasn't like me to be the way that I was."  
  
"So you're saying you were afraid of change?"  
  
"Sure, doctor."  
  
"Don't get hostile with me, Vegeta Ouji," she said, bringing up her motherly tone. "I'm trying to help you. I want you to get Bulma back, and not just because you need to be a family for Trunks, but because I know how good you two are together. She loves you and you love her." Vegeta rolled his eyes, but she ignored him. "I can see it in both of you. It reminds me of your father and myself…What you two could have is worth all this pain and disappoint."  
  
"It won't be worth a damn if I can't get her back. She's so hell-bent on hating me that she doesn't see anything else."  
  
"Remind you of someone?"  
  
"Who?"  
  
Mrs. Ouji only smiled and went back to stirring.  
  
"Shut up," he snapped. "Don't you dare compare her to me."  
  
"Why not?"  
  
"She's a good person, that's why. And if she's really acting like me then I don't want to try to win her back. I won't corrupt her anymore!" he yelled, banging a fist on the counter. "I've ruined enough people. I have to stop or I'll get out of control, and I need that control."  
  
"I love you, Vegeta," she sighed, smiling wide. "You've grown so much with your experiences over these past few months."  
  
"Whatever," he scoffed, then left the room. There was a song he needed to finish before the band had practice in two days. Hopefully that would keep his mind off his problems.  
  
ooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooo  
  
"What are you trying to say?" 17 asked, furrowing his brow. He hadn't touched his dinner since it arrived at the table. The turn their conversation took caught him completely off guard. "You would take Vegeta back?"  
  
"No, no," she said quickly, then took a sip of water in an attempt to calm her nerves. Her nerves always needed to be calmed now. "Well, I mean. I don't know 17. It would be different if he wasn't pursuing me."  
  
"And that justifies what he did?" he snapped unintentionally. "Look B, I know you miss him and what the two of you used to have, but you can never have that again. He hurt you, therefore he doesn't deserve you. Plain and simple…I never thought he deserved you."  
  
"That's sweet," she laughed, then brought back her serious tone. "But you don't understand. He's been a complete different person. Even more so than when he was trying to get me in the sack before. His mother tells me all these things. Just little things, like stuff he does when he thinks no one's around." She took another drink of water, this time bigger and larger, giving herself more time to collect her thoughts. "17, I can't get the other day out of my head. He didn't know I was there and he said all those things. He remembered all that about me. I just…Oh forget it."  
  
"No, tell me."  
  
"You'll disagree with me."  
  
"Sometimes that's how conversations go," he laughed, then reached across the table and gently grabbed one of her hands.  
  
"I think he's it."  
  
17 arched an eyebrow, then said, "Like The One?"  
  
"Something like that," she sighed. "I don't know. I can't stop loving him and I don't think I want to now. I said before that I couldn't love and hate him at the same time, and I don't know how much I hate him anymore."  
  
"But you don't know how he feels about all that."  
  
"Obviously he can stand me. That's a start."  
  
"Just don't get hurt, B." He smiled sadly at her, then leaned back. "'Cause, you know, I don't want to have to kick his ass."  
  
"Yeah, I kind of want Trunks' father in one piece," she laughed, and they finally started to eat.  
  
ooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooo  
  
Vegeta finished wrapping the package, looked it over, then wrote the correct address on it. He made sure not to put his return address, for then the package would never reach her. With one last look at his room—his old life—he took a deep breath and headed out for the post office.  
  
ooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooo  
  
---Chapter 12!!! :D Aren't I the best? I have homework and I still managed to get another chapter out. And OMG! I love this :P I know I'm a little bias, but I think you'll like it too.  
  
REVIEW!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! (Reviews=More Chapters)  
  
Next time: What is that package? 


	13. Opening Pandora's Box

Last time:  
  
Vegeta finished wrapping the package, looked it over, then wrote the correct address on it. He made sure not to put his return address, for then the package would never reach her. With one last look at his room—his old life—then took a deep breath and headed out for the post office.  
  
oooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooo  
  
Bulma yawned deep and forced herself out of bed. It was a sunny Saturday morning, the perfect way to start her last summer before college. The past few days had been devoted to school-related topics and cleaning up the mess Vegeta had made by crashing her graduation party. Now that all that was out of the way, she was free to enjoy her vacation.  
  
"First thing's first," she said aloud, as she picked up the phone.  
  
"Hello?" came a voice at the other end.  
  
"Hey, Chi. What's on the agenda for today?"  
  
"Good morning," Chi-Chi laughed.  
  
"What's so funny?"  
  
"That's what you say to me at the beginning of every summer. Never any other day."  
  
"Tradition, I suppose. Did you have anything you wanted to do?"  
  
"Well, it's not like we can do everything we did last summer."  
  
"I know," Bulma groaned. "And I was really looking forward to paintball and biking contests. Damn belly."  
  
"I love you, B," Chi-Chi laughed. "Well, to answer your question, I have no plans today. Goku said he's busy with the band, so my guess is Krillin and Maris are free too. Why don't you call Krillin and I'll call Maris and we'll all meet at your house in an hour?"  
  
"Sounds great. I'll see you and Gohan then."  
  
Bulma could picture her friend's wide smile, and the way she always grabbed her belly when her son's name was mentioned. She smiled herself at the thought of Trunks, then went to get ready for the day.  
  
ooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooo  
  
"Good morning, dear," Mrs. Briefs said as Bulma sat down at the kitchen table.  
  
Bulma gave her mother a strange look, and said, "There's something different about you today."  
  
Mrs. Briefs smiled wide and tossed her hair, something Bulma hadn't seen her do in years.  
  
"You're wearing your hair down…Why?"  
  
"I looked in the mirror this morning and I hated the way my hair looked, so I took out all the pins and let it hang on my shoulders. I think it looks much better this way."  
  
"Me too," Bulma said, grabbing the pitcher of orange juice. "Did anyone call for me while I was in the shower?"  
  
"A few." Her mother walked over to the table, set down a plate of toast, then went to the refrigerator for a bowl of fruit salad. "Mrs. Ouji wanted to know if you were free for dinner tonight, Dr. Kito called to say your appointment is Tuesday at 3:30…and a package came for you."  
  
"Great, I'll call Mrs. Ouji back after breakfast." She was about to dig into her fruit salad, when the last thing her mother had said struck her. "Did you say I have a package?"  
  
"Yes. It's on the coffee table in the living room. What did you order?"  
  
"Nothing…Wonder what it is," she mumbled to herself, then got up to get the package. Immediately it struck her as odd that there was no return address, but it had most certainly been mailed. She brought it back into the kitchen with her, where she grabbed a knife, and ripped through the tape.  
  
She let out a small sound, not quite a gasp, and stared into the box.  
  
"What is it?" Mrs. Briefs asked.  
  
"It's…" But the words fell from her lips, as she reached into the box and pulled out what was inside.  
  
"Isn't that something you made?" her mother asked, eyeing the object.  
  
"It's Pandora's Box…"  
  
"Your little lock box?"  
  
Bulma nodded slowly, but she wasn't really paying attention. There was something else in the package, a small folded piece of paper. She took a deep breath, took out the note, and slipped it into her pocket before her mother could see.  
  
"Do you know who sent it?"  
  
"I have a hunch," Bulma said, then grabbed Pandora's Box and went up to her room without touching her breakfast.  
  
oooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooo  
  
Bulma read the note for the tenth time, and still it didn't make sense. She'd searched the package for another note, or a clue as to what she was supposed to look for, but she only became more confused. It was obvious that the package was from Vegeta; the note was even in his handwriting. What she couldn't figure, was what his message meant; "What's inside is not food, but truth."  
  
"Really?" Bulma had scoffed the first time. She didn't think he'd send her a package of cookies in a password-locked mini-fridge.  
  
In small print at the bottom of the note, was a hint as to what the password could be, but even if she didn't figure it out, she'd have to get Vegeta to open it, because it was voice activated by his voice alone. The clue sounded simple enough, but it seemed her brain was on temporary shutdown; "Password hint: 'Have you ever considered putting it to use?'"  
  
"What the hell are you trying to tell me, Vegeta?" she groaned, setting the note on her bedside table. It was obvious that it was something she should know, but he made it complicated enough that it would take her some time to figure it out, and by then Vegeta could be long gone with a wife in the Bahamas or something. "This is ridiculous," she sighed, deciding to forget about the package and the cryptic note for now.  
  
ooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooo  
  
18 cuddled up close to Krillin, her arm draped comfortably over his lap. It was eight o'clock, but already they were in for the night. They decided to take a break from the others, just this once, and have a night completely to themselves.  
  
It was soon interrupted by the ringing of 18's cellular phone, which she could have sworn she'd turned off.  
  
"Hello?" she answered, rather annoyed. Everyone knew that she was spending the night with Krillin, and did not want to be disturbed.  
  
"Sorry, 18," came Bulma's sincere voice.  
  
18's glare immediately softened.  
  
"I just needed to ask you something."  
  
"Shoot."  
  
"Have you seen Vegeta lately? He was supposed to meet me at the doctor's office Tuesday and never showed, and then we were supposed to pick out cribs, you know, one of each of our houses, and he never showed either, and so I called his mother and—"  
  
"Calm down, B. Take a deep breath."  
  
"Sorry," she sighed. "It's just I haven't seen him in over a week."  
  
"I thought you two were still hating each other. Why do you want to see him?"  
  
"Do you know where he is?" she asked, deliberately avoiding the question.  
  
"Home, last time I checked. Every time I've been over there, he's been in his studio writing songs like mad. I think he'll make two new albums at the rate he's going…He never mentioned anything about meeting you this week."  
  
"When's the last time you talked to him?"  
  
"This afternoon."  
  
"I just called his house, and his mom said she didn't know where he was."  
  
"Maybe he left between now and then…Look B, I don't know what to tell you. It sounds to me like he's avoiding you, which makes perfect sense if you ask me."  
  
"Why?"  
  
"He loves you, Bulma, and if he can't have you, then he doesn't want to see you. You want nothing to do with him, therefore he'll give you what you want…It's crazy. I never thought I'd see the day when he'd finally learn to let himself feel something besides hate. You should be proud of yourself."  
  
"Too bad I could never feel that," Bulma said sadly under her breath.  
  
"What was that?"  
  
"Nothing…Look, if you see him or talk to him, could you tell him to give me a call? I don't care what time it is."  
  
"Alright. Just be careful."  
  
"I know," Bulma sighed. "But I don't think I have anything to lose now. Maybe being reckless is the answer this time."  
  
"Don't let him hurt you again, Bulma."  
  
"If you're right, and he does love me, then I don't see any reason to back down."  
  
"What're you saying?"  
  
"18, I am never going to find a man I love more than Vegeta. If I get hurt again, at least I can say that I tried. I don't want to give up because I'm scared of rejection. Not again. That's what I did the first time, and look where it got me. Alone and knocked up…This may be the stupidest thing I've ever done, but it's also the rightest."  
  
"Good luck, B."  
  
"Thanks, 18. I knew you'd understand."  
  
"One more thing."  
  
"Yeah?"  
  
"Rightest isn't a word."  
  
Bulma only laughed and hung up the phone, a knot as big as the Grand Canyon in her stomach.  
  
ooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooo  
  
Vegeta checked his hair one last time in the mirror, frowned, then went to answer the door. She smiled brightly at him as he opened the door, even chancing a hug. He let her do it, hugging her in return, then slung his arm over her shoulder and escorted her to his car.  
  
Just out of view, Mrs. Ouji watched, her eyes brimming with tears. This was not how things were supposed to turn out, and yet everything seemed over.  
  
The ringing of the phone startled her back into reality.  
  
"Hello?"  
  
"Mrs. Ouji," came Bulma's cheery voice. "Is Vegeta there?"  
  
"No, Bulma. I'm sorry."  
  
"Are you alright?"  
  
"I shouldn't be the one to tell you."  
  
"What?"  
  
"Please don't be angry."  
  
Bulma's muscles tightened.  
  
"What is it?"  
  
"Vegeta just left…for a date."  
  
Bulma gasped audibly, her knees feeling weak.  
  
"D-Do you know with who?"  
  
"I'm so sorry, Bulma," Mrs. Ouji sighed. What she had to say next was one of the hardest things she'd had to tell someone. "Her name is Hitomi. She—"  
  
"I know who she is," Bulma said quickly. "Thank you. Good-bye."  
  
She hung up the phone before it had a chance to slip through her fingers.  
  
Hitomi.  
  
She was THE girl. Vegeta had known her all his life, as 18 had told Bulma, and they had been on and off for as long as anyone could remember. The last time they were together as a couple, was just after Green Dragon made it big. Hitomi decided to break it off because she knew they'd never see each other, among other reasons. She had told 18 several times that her and Vegeta would never work; he was bossy, rude, unloving, and she always had a feeling that he was unfaithful. Vegeta agreed that they should break-up, and they hadn't spoken since.  
  
Until now.  
  
ooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooo  
  
"Ok," Bulma said loudly, everyone's eyes on her as she paced Goku's living room. "I need to figure out that password—" She pointed to Pandora's Box and the note beside it on the coffee table. "—and I need it as soon as humanly possible." There were tears in her eyes, but no one brought attention to them. She needed to feel in control now, and no one was going to challenge that.  
  
Vegeta had been officially dating Hitomi for three days now.  
  
"Did he give you any other clues?" 17 asked, shrinking back when he received an angry glare from Bulma.  
  
"Don't you think I would tell you if there was?" she snapped, but immediately felt bad. "Sorry. I'm just a tad bit tense right now."  
  
"It's ok," he sighed.  
  
"No, it isn't. You guys are throwing away your plans to help me, and I'm being nothing but a pain in the ass."  
  
"We understand," Chi-Chi said. "As far as I'm concerned nothing is more important at the moment. We need to get this password."  
  
"Then there's the next hurdle," Bulma sighed.  
  
"What?"  
  
"Finding Vegeta. I haven't been able to find him for a week and a half."  
  
"We can find him easy," Goku said, motioning to the twins. "He can't stay far from us, especially with the new album we're working on. He has to come to one of us, or Jun, eventually."  
  
Silence set in, and the group went to work, pushing their brains to the limit to figure out the password. Hundreds of possibilities were scrawled on scraps of paper throughout the living room, though when they came together to debate, no one could agree on one password. None were dead-on right, or even close. They had it down to a few perimeters. It was one word, something she and Vegeta had in common, and the phrase "Have you ever considered putting it to use?" was, of course, the main focus.  
  
"Maybe it's something he said to you," Maris suggested, scratched her head. She was running out of ideas, as were they all.  
  
"I don't think so," Bulma sighed. "It doesn't sound Vegeta-esque." The group nodded.  
  
Hours ticked on and the room began to grow restless. Plates and bowls and cups were scattered in all directions; minds were worn thin.  
  
"This is ridiculous," Maris snapped. "I don't see how anyone could get this…What an ass. Stupid celebrity ego. Just because he can sing, doesn't mean he can string people out like this."  
  
Beside her Krillin let out a small gasp, catching everyone's attention.  
  
"What?" Bulma all but demanded, her heart racing.  
  
He smiled wide, knowing that he had the correct password, the only possible choice. And, when the word passed his lips, everyone agreed.  
  
ooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooo  
  
---Chapter 13!!! Hmm…I don't know so much about this one. I like it, but there's something weird…I don't know, you be the judge. I might change it—a lot—but I might leave it if enough people like it.  
  
REVIEW!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! (Reviews=More Chapters)  
  
Next time: WHAT'S THE PASSWORD!? 


	14. Always

Last time:  
  
"What?" Bulma all but demanded, her heart racing.  
  
He smiled wide, knowing that he had the correct password, the only possible choice. And, when the word passed his lips, everyone agreed.  
  
ooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooo  
  
Vegeta sat up and rubbed his eyes. The doorbell was ringing, and must have been for some time. Clearly his mother wasn't home; he hadn't the faintest idea where she could be, nor did he care.  
  
"Coming," he grumbled as he approached the door, pulling a shirt on in a half-attempt to look presentable. He pulled open the door, ready to glare at the person who woke him from such a nice sleep, when shock got the better of him. "Wh—Bulma?"  
  
"I finally found you," she said, laughing uneasily. "I wasn't expecting you to be here."  
  
"I've been busy." He puffed himself up and replaced his surprised tone with one of his usual gruffness. Bulma wasn't at all surprised.  
  
"So I've heard. Are you busy now?"  
  
He shrugged his shoulders and leaned against the doorframe.  
  
"Nice hair," he said, unable to keep from smiling a little. Hitomi was upstairs sleeping in his bed, a fact he wished was untrue. "Is it for me?"  
  
"Why else would I deliberately make myself look like a moron?" she laughed, then shifted her weight, her thoughts constantly on Pandora's Box which waited patiently in her backpack. She hated the way she felt right now; uneasy, exposed, ridiculous—thanks to the pigtails. But at least he appreciated what she'd done for him.  
  
"You figured out the password, I take it."  
  
Bulma nodded and retrieved it from her backpack.  
  
"It was actually Krillin who got it. You didn't make it easy."  
  
"That was the point," he said, grabbing the lock box.  
  
"Did you intend for me to figure it out?"  
  
"I was hoping you wouldn't. Now that you have, do you want it open?"  
  
"I don't know anymore," she sighed. "Three days ago I would have said absolutely, now everything is fucked again…Hitomi is here, isn't she?"  
  
"She is."  
  
Bulma's lip quivered some in an attempt to calm herself.  
  
"You know, I don't want it opened after all," she said quickly and took it back, clutching it to her chest as if it were precious gold. "I just want you to answer one question, then I'll leave you to…your new life."  
  
"I think you should wear your hair like that more often."  
  
"Don't be cute," she sighed. "I'm trying to be serious." She took a deep breath, pushing all thoughts of Hitomi and Vegeta together out of her mind. "I asked you once before if you had any remorse for what you did to me, and you said no."  
  
"You want to know if that's changed?"  
  
She nodded, her eyes instinctively at the ground.  
  
"Yes and no."  
  
She looked up, immediately confused and mildly angry.  
  
"I have remorse in the sense that I regret hurting you, but I can't be sorry for what's in Pandora's Box."  
  
Bulma's eyes misted, but she refused to cry. She'd already told him she didn't want it opened and she'd be damned if she appeared so unstable in front of him. Being stubborn seemed to work so well for both of them, almost to the point that they didn't know what they were being stubborn about.  
  
"Thank you then," she said, and took a few steps back, just to the edge of the porch. "I really needed to know that."  
  
"We never should have met."  
  
"I'm beginning to agree with that fact."  
  
"You don't have to leave." His voice sounded almost hopeful; painful.  
  
"What reason do I have to stay? You're with Hitomi now and I have nothing new to discuss with you about Trunks."  
  
She was halfway down the steps, when Vegeta's gentle grasp pulled her up, her back against his chest, his head buried in the crook of her neck.  
  
"Don't do this," she all but whimpered. "I won't let you hurt me anymore."  
  
He sighed, disappointed, but didn't release her. Instead, he reached forward to grab her wrist and bring Pandora's Box close to his lips, right above the tiny, almost invisible speaker.  
  
"After everything, you deserve to know," he said, trying his hardest to keep his voice steady and void of any emotion. The contents of that box would change the rest of their lives. He kissed her cheek roughly, but at the same time tenderly, then whispered, "Karaoke."  
  
oooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooo  
  
Bulma's fingers trembled as she went to open the box, propped awkwardly against the steering wheel. A small compartment held what she was looking for, the only thing inside; a single piece of folded paper. She pulled it out, set the box on the passenger's seat, and took a deep breath. Somehow she knew that whatever was on that piece of paper would change her life forever.  
  
"Just open it," she snapped at herself, and slowly unfolded it with her thumb.  
  
At first the words didn't make sense, even seemed foreign to her, but they quickly set in and the tears began to swell.  
  
The message was written in Latin, a language she'd spoken with Vegeta a number of times just to irritate the rest of the group and get a good laugh. Now that she thought about it—which was the strangest and most out of place to think of such things—she and Vegeta never did try to learn Portuguese like they agreed to back in Egypt. Where had those plans gone? Where had her life gone? Where had the Vegeta she once knew gone?  
  
"Who are you?" she sighed, folding up the paper again, and slipped it into her pocket. Not that she was sad about the note, in fact she couldn't remember a time she'd been so happy and shocked and confused and depressed all at once. She just couldn't figure where the change came from, when the old Vegeta left and the new one came about. True, they were nearly the same, but this new Vegeta had a heart, a niceness to him that could hardly be seen, if at all, before. She couldn't decide which she liked more, if she would have even fallen for the new Vegeta had he been this way then. She quickly realized, though, that she would have, for he'd played those games, acted like a prince, when really he was the executioner, ready with axe in hand to cut away her happiness.  
  
After ten minutes of sitting in the car and pondering, she finally started the engine and pulled away from the curb, determined to wipe her mind free of the proclamation on that insignificant-looking piece of paper. She couldn't allow herself to think about it anymore than she already had; he was gone, out of her reach, with someone else, someone he'd known longer than her, someone with a history, someone she could never be.  
  
In the back of her mind, she knew she was being ridiculous, that if she walked back up to his house and told him she wanted him back, that he would take her without a second thought. Hitomi was nothing to him, that was clear, but the thought of him with yet another girl was agonizing. Since their break-up Bulma had only kissed another guy, and she didn't even like him in that way. It was a farce; one she subconsciously hoped would make Vegeta jealous or angry. And while that had worked, it also backfired at the same time. Instead of trying to move on and be happy, she obsessed over Vegeta and never once looked to another guy for a date or possible relationship. Now she was so deeply in love that she doubted her feelings would ever leave her be, or even lessen for that matter. And that's when she realized that she couldn't pinpoint the reason for such strong feelings, that they seemed to come out of nowhere and she couldn't remember when she knew she loved him, only that she did and no matter what he did she always would.  
  
"Why do I want him back?" she groaned at the windshield, after-expecting an answer. Of course there was the obvious, that she loved him, but he was hardly a passable boyfriend. Maybe she was being irrational; maybe wanting him back was a side effect of loving him so much. Maybe if he did take her back she wouldn't be as happy as her heart was telling her she would be. Going back to him seemed like the only thing to do twenty minutes ago, but now, knowing that he would be returning to another girl, her nerve was lost and her desire diminished. But still she wanted to be with him; she couldn't shake the feeling, the want, no matter how many times she told herself he was nothing but trouble, the worst thing that had ever happened to her, the reason the rest of her life was forever changed, the reason for Trunks.  
  
"My baby," she whispered, placing a hand on her belly. She was getting so big now. Pretty soon he would be born and then her time with Vegeta would double, or triple. She didn't even know how custody would work. Surely Vegeta or Jun wouldn't try to win custody because of his fame. She'd never even considered that fact until now, and suddenly she was terrified and had to pull the car over.  
  
"Pick up," she demanded of her cellular phone.  
  
"Hello?" came Vegeta's angry voice; he'd just fallen back to sleep, having to force himself to not think about Bulma and the truth she now knew.  
  
"You're not going to try for custody, are you?" she asked, her voice angry and scared; shaky, so unlike her.  
  
"For Trunks?"  
  
"Who's Trunks?" Bulma heard a voice in the background; Hitomi. Her heart cracked just a little.  
  
"My son, you dimwit," he grumbled. "Of course not, woman, are you insane? I told you I'm done hurting you."  
  
"What about Jun?"  
  
"What about her?"  
  
"Would she try?"  
  
"She doesn't have the grounds to pull something like that. Besides, I'd have her neck if she even hinted at it, and she's not that dumb. She knows you're better suited to raise a child than I am. Stop worrying."  
  
"Alright," she sighed, satisfied with his answer.  
  
"Did you open it?" Now he was the one who sounded shaky, though she wouldn't have caught it if the words had no meaning.  
  
"Would it change the mood of the conversation?"  
  
"The mood his grim at best…Did you open it?"  
  
"What would it change if I had?" Everything!, she wanted to scream.  
  
"Maybe nothing. Maybe its just more poetry. Maybe I didn't know what I was writing and I was drunk."  
  
"Were you?"  
  
"No," he admitted. "But you still haven't answered me."  
  
"I don't think there's any reason for me to open it."  
  
"Reason or no, I don't care. Just give me a straight answer."  
  
"No," she lied. "I didn't open it and I don't think I ever will. Nothing can change my opinion of you," she lied harder. "I will never want you back." Her biggest lie.  
  
"It's for the best," he lied, too. "I shouldn't have given you that."  
  
"I'll give it back the next time I see you, whenever that is."  
  
"Soon."  
  
"Alright. Bye."  
  
She didn't wait for him to say good-bye before she hung up.  
  
"Why can't I tell you?" she whispered, not seeing the little green light on her phone that meant she'd missed the button; it was still on.  
"Tell me what?" Vegeta sighed, knowing she wouldn't hear him, and hung up the phone.  
  
oooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooo  
  
"You people," Chi-Chi groaned, handing the paper back to Bulma. "You know damn well that I can't read whatever the hell that language is."  
  
"It's Latin," Bulma informed her. "But I don't know if I want to tell you, or anyone else."  
  
"Why not!" she baulked, very much hurt by the statement. Since they were children Bulma and Chi-Chi told each other everything, big and small, but especially big. And this was HUGE!  
  
"I don't see a reason, other than to tell you. I told Vegeta I didn't open the box, but I'm guessing he knows anyway. He has a way with things like that."  
  
"Come on, B," Chi-Chi sighed, putting on her best puppy dog face. "I won't tell anyone, not even Krillin or Goku if you don't want me to."  
  
"It's not that, just that I don't want you to get all excited about it. I want to try to forget I saw it. I don't want to let it effect me anymore."  
  
"Anymore? You read it, what, an hour ago?"  
  
"And that's too long to think about it. It's bad news, no matter how great it is."  
  
"You can't say stuff like that and then not tell me!" Chi-Chi whined. "Come on! I swear I won't even comment on it. I can't not know."  
  
"Fine," Bulma sighed, taking a seat across from her on the loveseat. "But not a word to anyone, no matter how much you need to talk about it."  
  
"On Gohan's life," she swore, crossing her hand over her chest in the universal gesture.  
  
Bulma nodded slowly, then crossed the room to grab a scrap of paper off the desk in the far corner. She quickly jotted down the most simple meaning for the words, then walked back over to Chi-Chi, hesitant to give her the information. The thirteen little words that changed her life, and would change Chi-Chi's too, if only for Bulma's sake.  
  
"Can I see it or not?" Chi-Chi asked impatiently.  
  
"Will you believe it is more like it…I don't…Not really."  
  
"Bulma!"  
  
"Alright, alright," she sighed, and handed her the piece of paper. Chi-Chi's eyes immediately bulged and she let out a small gasp. She tried not to smile, but her lips wouldn't cooperate. It took all her willpower to keep from commenting.  
  
After several long moments she looked up and forced out, "What's for dinner?"  
  
"Just say it, but I don't want to hear another word, ok?"  
  
"Bulma!" Chi-Chi practically yelled in excitement. "How can this not be good news? How didn't you faint?"  
  
"I have enough sense to not believe him, especially with something like that."  
  
"But wouldn't he try his hardest to make you believe it without actually having to say it? Doesn't that defeat the purpose of the note? Doesn't that mean it's true?"  
  
"I can't let it be true," Bulma sighed, sinking into the cushions. "Because if it is, I don't know how I can go on like this."  
  
"Like what?"  
  
"Without him…"  
  
"Then tell him how you feel. He's not serious about Hitomi, you know that."  
  
"I also know that he lured me to him the first time. How do I know this isn't another lure?"  
  
"You're saying there's no possible way he could be telling the truth?"  
  
Bulma only nodded, rolling her eyes.  
  
"I don't know, B. It sounds genuine to me. Would you believe him if he shouted from the rooftops?"  
  
"That isn't necessary," she grunted.  
  
"B, I know he hurt you, but you deserve more than this. Look at you."  
  
"What about me?"  
  
"You're miserable without him. You need him."  
  
"I'm not miserable, Chi. Stop assuming stuff you know nothing about."  
  
"Don't get snippy with me, Bulma Briefs," Chi-Chi snapped. "I'm your friend, I wouldn't give you advice unless I was sure it was the right advice. You know how uneasy Vegeta makes me, and here I am telling you to take him back…Think about it. I have a doctor's appointment. I'll see you tomorrow."  
  
Bulma nodded slowly, her fingers spidered over her swollen belly. Trunks gave a small kick, making her smile for a split second, then was calm.  
  
Chi-Chi left without another word, kicking herself for promising to keep quiet.  
  
oooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooo  
  
Vegeta stepped back slowly and sat on his bed. He told himself over and over that emotion was for the weak, but emotions were never his area of expertise, and the tears flowed soundlessly like a waterfall.  
  
On the floor lay Pandora's Box, open and empty. She'd lied. She'd opened it and forgot to put the note back to complete the illusion. She knew and it changed nothing. Her face had been so calm and level when they were at the doctor's office, even more so when she'd handed him the box.  
  
"Why did I have to know you?" he groaned as he fell back on his pillows, wiping furiously at his eyes.  
  
In the back of his mind he saw the words he's written, translated to Japanese like magic, and as powerful and meaningless as ever: "I don't know how, but I love you, Bulma Briefs…And always will…"  
  
ooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooo  
  
---Chapter 14! Holy Kuso! I can't believe how mean I am :P But, alas, I am. Heehee. I know, I know, they aren't together, even after that amazing, and true, note. But don't you worry my lovelies, I promise, on Vegeta's life, that I'll make everything make sense; everything will turn out just fine, Bulma just needs a swift kick in the ass.  
  
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Next time: What the hell is your problem, Bulma Briefs!? 


	15. Selfish Escape

Last time:  
  
"Why did I have to know you?" he groaned as he fell back on his pillows, wiping furiously at his eyes.  
  
In the back of his mind he saw the words he's written, translated to Japanese like magic, and as powerful and meaningless as ever: "I don't know how, but I love you, Bulma Briefs…And always will…"  
  
ooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooo  
  
The scene couldn't have been more beautiful and terrible. 18 and Maris had been shopping for baby gifts for Bulma and Chi-Chi, when they got bored and decided to see what Vegeta was up to. They hadn't seen him in a few days, and intended to ask him a few choice questions. But when they opened the door, they were in for the surprise of a lifetime.  
  
"Get the fuck out," Vegeta demanded, wiping roughly at his eyes, hoping against all odds that they didn't see the tears.  
  
"Vegeta, are you alright?" 18 asked, taking bold steps forward. She sat cautiously on the bed beside him, half-expecting him to shove her off.  
  
"I'm peachy," he snapped.  
  
"Vegeta, you ca—" Maris began, but was cut off by him.  
  
"She loves me and she knows I love her, and still its not good enough!"  
  
They stared at him as if he'd just shot someone in front of them.  
  
"She needs trust too, Vegeta." Maris said after a long pause.  
  
"Yeah," 18 added, placing a gentle hand on his leg. This time he did push her away. "And she doesn't trust you at all."  
  
"It isn't trust in me that she needs."  
  
The girls looked to each other, then back to Vegeta.  
  
"She doesn't trust herself if she takes me back," he elaborated. He wiped at his eyes again, livid because they wouldn't dry.  
  
"How so?" Maris wondered out loud.  
  
"She doesn't trust that she can be truly happy and completely forget who I used to be. She thinks she'll always hate me somehow in the back of her mind, and that terrifies her…I want her back, but not like that!"  
  
"And she wants you back." 18 said.  
  
"No she doesn't."  
  
"Yes, she does," they said in unison.  
  
Vegeta's head snapped in Maris's direction, then to 18. His lips turned down and he looked away.  
  
"You're lying. If she wanted me back—"  
  
"Are you dense?" 18 snapped. "She's stubborn, you baka! She has talked about nothing but you since the moment you two met! The other day she told 17 that she wanted you back, but she was scared and stubborn. Stubborn just like you…No wonder you make such a good pair. Kami!"  
  
"Did you say you love her?" Maris asked, just realizing his statement that brought about the topic of conversation.  
  
"What? Do you need it spelled out for you! I. Love. Her. Ok!?"  
  
"And you've told her this?"  
  
"Of course I have," he grunted. "You think that'd make a difference. But no."  
  
"What about Hitomi?"  
  
"What about her?"  
  
"What do you even have with her?" 18 asked. "Where are you going?"  
  
"Nowhere," he sighed, leaning back. "I dumped her this morning."  
  
"Good," she said with much contempt. "I never liked her. You two only ever went out for something to do."  
  
"What do you think it was about this time?"  
  
"You were trying to make Bulma jealous," Maris said, narrowing her brow. Both Vegeta and 18 looked at her with slightly wider eyes. Seeing Maris angry was the 8th wonder of the world. Making her mad was a death wish.  
  
"I was not," Vegeta snapped after a moment. "Not intentionally."  
  
"Well—" Her voice and eyes softened. "—it's over now. I suggest you find Bulma as soon as possible and beg her to take you back, because she deserves no less."  
  
Vegeta lowered his eyes and scowled at his hands. They were so right it scared him, and yet he didn't know if he had it in him to do what it took to get her back. Ever since he realized he was in love with her, he'd felt this indescribable weakness coursing through his veins. He hated feeling weak in any way, but there was no way he could know that the weak feeling was a direct result of his fear to love. He coupled love with pain and weakness, and therefore his mind told him he was weak; and now he was angry.  
  
"Go home," he finally said, not looking up. "There's nothing more to say."  
  
oooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooo  
  
"What am I supposed to do?" Bulma sighed, easing into his embrace. Just being near him made her smile; so familiar and caring. Like home.  
  
"I don't know, sweetie," he said. He gave her a loving kiss on the forehead, then took a step back and held her out at arms length. "But I know you, and this is nothing you can't handle. There's never been a challenge you couldn't overcome."  
  
"I just feel like giving up, you know?"  
  
"I've never known you to give up anything. Especially not something as important as this. B, you love him. Love like that doesn't happen everyday, and if you get hurt in the process, then that only proves how much you love him that you'd put yourself in that position…I think if you don't, you'll regret it for the rest of your life."  
  
"I know." She cast her eyes at the ground, forcing her tears to obey.  
  
"Besides, I don't want you hanging around my house everyday when you're fifty. I love you, but—"  
  
"Shut up, Yamcha," she laughed, looking up, her eyes glistening. He gave her a sad smile, then wrapped his arms around her shoulders.  
  
"Tsuki agrees with me, you know."  
  
"About what?" she asked, her head resting on his shoulder.  
  
"That you should tell Vegeta exactly how you feel. Rejection is the worst that could happen, but at least you can say you were brave enough to try, even with all the odds stacked against you."  
  
"I'm not afraid of being rejected," she said quietly. "I just…I don't know…I wish I knew how this was all going to end."  
  
"Would it help if I gave you my point of view about what he must be feeling?"  
  
"Shoot."  
  
"When I cheated on you, I felt the deepest regret imaginable. When I looked at the girl in the bed beside me and didn't see you, I wanted to puke. And then when I told you I couldn't bear to look at you. Every time I thought about you I cried. I cried myself to sleep every night before you finally talked to me again."  
  
"Yamcha?" she interrupted, pulling her head back.  
  
"Hmm?"  
  
"Get to the point."  
  
"Sorry," he sighed. "The point I'm trying to make is that you can't know what Vegeta feels about all of this. You want to believe that he's this horrible person, but do you see me as a horrible person? Do you think about what I did every time you look at me?"  
  
Bulma frowned and shook her head. He was absolutely right. It was like it never happened.  
  
"I believe that he truly loves you, as much as I loved you. And I still love you, I always will, but with us it's different." Bulma wiped her eyes and nodded. "And with you and Vegeta, it could be such an amazing thing…Just think about that some before you make any irrational decisions. He could be hurting just as much as you are."  
  
"There's a big difference between you and him though, Yamcha."  
  
"What?"  
  
"The way he cheated," she sighed, the pain ebbing at her heart. "When you cheated, it was like it was meant to happen somehow, like I said before. We were never meant to be together forever. And you felt horrible the moment you realized your mistake…But with Vegeta…He was so proud of what he'd done. He called me and made sure I knew. He told me he used me and that he had no remorse, that he'd planned it from the beginning and I was his little ignorant fool…He lured me to him by pretending to be a different person, and now he's that different person again…I don't know what to believe. I want to give him another chance. I want to take him back and have that feeling, but then I'd still be thinking, in the back of my head, that he hurt me more than once and he's fully capable of doing it again. He enjoys hurting people…"  
  
"Why couldn't he have changed? Is it so hard to believe that you had such an effect on him that you changed him for the better?"  
  
Bulma laughed bitterly.  
  
"I'm serious. You told me before how hard he took his father's death. That moment shaped him for the rest of his life. He didn't know how to love, so he probably hated the idea of it. But then you happened and you confused him and when he found himself in love and settled down, he panicked. He cheated so he didn't feel so alien."  
  
"I'm glad he has at least one person that believes that."  
  
"Bulma," Yamcha sighed, giving her a quick kiss on the cheek. "You'll understand it someday. If you truly love him, you'll understand. I've hardly met the guy, but I always knew there was something about him when he was with you. He looked at you the way I used to look at you."  
  
"Would it make you feel better if I promised to think about it?"  
  
"Yes, ma'am," he laughed. "Now come on. Tsuki's probably already at the theater."  
  
"Alright. Just let me go grab my coat. It's always so cold in there."  
  
"K. I'll be in the car."  
  
Bulma raced back inside, or at least walked as fast as someone in her condition could, completely missing the note on the bulletin board next to the door in frantic scribbles: Call Vegeta—Emergency!  
  
oooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooo  
  
Vegeta held his mother's hand gently, the gentle rhythm of the heart monitor his only source of comfort. It had been three hours since the incident, since he called Bulma's house, desperately in need of her help and consolation. It turned out that her father, Dr. Briefs, was the only one in the housing complex. He rushed Vegeta and his mother to the hospital as fast as he could.  
  
They were just in time to barely save her life.  
  
"I should have paid more attention to you," he sighed, giving her still figure a loving kiss on the forehead.  
  
"Vegeta," came a familiar, yet strange voice. It was Dr. Briefs, a man he barely knew who quite possibly shaped the rest of his life the day he gave Bulma Green Dragon tickets. And now he's saved his mother.  
  
Vegeta looked up and gave him a firm nod.  
  
"I finally got a hold of Bulma." He walked all the way in the room, two steaming cups of coffee in his hands. He handed one to Vegeta, then took a seat at the foot of the bed. "I didn't tell her what happened. I felt it was more appropriate for you to tell her. Yamcha is driving her over…She's hysterical."  
  
"What did you tell her?" Vegeta asked, his eyes drifting towards his unconscious mother.  
  
"That your mother was rushed to the Emergency Room a few hours ago, and now she's in the ICU…She has a very strong bond with your mother."  
  
"I'm aware," he sighed.  
  
"Vegeta, if there's something you need to talk about, I can talk."  
  
Vegeta shook his head slowly.  
  
"Is it something you'd rather discuss with Bulma?"  
  
No answer.  
  
"Alright." Dr. Briefs stood and placed a gentle hand on Vegeta's shoulder. "You're a good kid, Vegeta. You may have done some bad things in the past, but I can see you want to be as good as you've always had the potential to be. Bulma could see that good. That's why it was so easy for her to love you. As far as I'm concerned, you're my son."  
  
Vegeta looked up at Dr. Briefs and gave a small nod. He waited for him to leave before he grabbed his mother's hand again.  
  
oooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooo  
  
Bulma raced through the halls of the sterile hospital, her eyes blurry and her heart pounding. She couldn't remember a time she'd been more terrified.  
  
She took a sharp corner and spotted her father down the hall, his head hung, sitting in a chair against the wall. She picked up speed and came skidding to a stop in front of him. He didn't even see her coming.  
  
"Where is she?" she blurted out frantically, her cheeks stained with tears. Yamcha came running in behind her five seconds later.  
  
"There," Dr. Briefs answered solemnly, pointing at the door he was sitting across.  
  
Bulma pushed open the door and walked slowly into the room. Her chest burned, and when she saw Vegeta sitting there, his hand clutching his mother's, her soul ached too.  
  
"How is she?" she asked cautiously, approaching the bed gradually.  
  
"Alive," Vegeta answered without looking up. From where she stood, she could see his eyes were red and swollen.  
  
"How are you?" She was now standing right beside him.  
  
"I've been better," he said hotly.  
  
Bulma bit her bottom lip nervously.  
  
"She tried to kill herself."  
  
"What?" she baulked, her hands shaking as she clutched the guardrail. "T-T-Tell me you're joking."  
  
"I wouldn't joke about that shit," he spat. "I needed you, Bulma."  
  
"Vegeta, I'm sorry I couldn't be here with you," she whispered, her eyes welling with tears again. "If I knew, I'd have been here in a heartbeat. I'd have held your hand through it and told you everything would be fine. I'd have kept a straight face just so you didn't cry any more…Vegeta…I…I wish I could have been here."  
  
Vegeta shrugged his shoulders, looking at her for the first time since she entered the room. There was such a deep sadness in his eyes, Bulma couldn't even begin to comprehend it.  
  
"She never could deal with losing my father," he said after a long pause. "She hasn't even kissed another man since then." Bulma pulled up a chair beside Vegeta, placing a hand on his. "When she came home from the store today she was really upset. We'd gotten in another fight before she left, so I figured she was still fuming…Then she said she saw 'him' in the grocery store…the man responsible for my father's death. He'd been in prison, and then moved away when he got out. I can't begin to image why he was there," Vegeta said with disgust. "That asshole had no right being there…He…He smiled at my mother, looked her directly in the eyes and smiled…She ran up to her room after telling me. When she didn't come down for a phone call, I went to get her…She couldn't handle it. All the stress I've caused and her issues with 'him'…I thought she was dead…" He took a deep, shaky breath and looked to his mother. "They had to pump her stomach to get all the pills out."  
  
"I wish there was something I could do," Bulma sighed.  
  
Vegeta glanced at her, then back at his mother. For a moment, Bulma thought he might say that what she could do was take him back, but he only shrugged. There was no doubt in her mind that that's what he was thinking. She didn't understand why he didn't.  
  
A soft knock at the door caught their attention.  
  
"Excuse me," came the sweet voice of a nurse. "I'm sorry, but visiting hours are over in five minutes."  
  
"Thank you," Bulma said, and stood to push the chair back to where she got it. "Do you want a ride home?"  
  
Vegeta looked out the window and gave a sad smile. It was pouring now.  
  
"No," he said. "I'll walk."  
  
"But—"  
  
"I'll walk," he said more sternly. "Good-bye Bulma."  
  
oooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooo  
  
Bulma sat quietly on her bed, watching the rain fall in fat droplets. It'd been raining for three days straight, and showed no signs of letting up any time soon. Mrs. Ouji had been home from the hospital since yesterday, but she was too weak for company. The doctor's ordered her to stay in bed, only allowing Vegeta to see and care for her.  
  
Twice already, Bulma had called the Ouji residence, only to get the machine. It was nearing ten o'clock; the rain made the night look alive.  
  
She grabbed the phone and dialed Vegeta's number. It rang three times, then the answering machine picked up. She sighed painfully and hung up the phone. All she needed was one minute to tell Vegeta how she felt.  
  
And then, in an incredibly irrational act, Bulma grabbed her car keys and ran out of her room, leaving her jacket behind. She was just big enough to make it extremely hard to drive, but there was nothing that could stop her now.  
  
When she reached Vegeta's house, all but one light was out. She stepped out into the rain, cupped her hands around her mouth, and screamed, "Vegeta!!!"  
  
She smiled when the porch light came on.  
  
"Bulma!" Vegeta snapped. "What the hell are you doing out here? You're going to get you and the baby sick!"  
  
"I love you!" she called back, the rain washing away her tears of sadness and joy. She couldn't have come up with a more perfect moment.  
  
oooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooo  
  
---Chapter 15! Damn, I'm really mean, huh? :P How was that? Good? Bad? Too extreme? Don't worry, I'll explain more about Mrs. Ouji later. She's not psycho! I swear!  
  
REVIEW!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! (ReviewsMore Chapters)  
  
Next time: The rest of that scene…doo doo doooooooooo! Believe me, it's something to look forward to!  
  
Note: A lot of people have mentioned the "Neighbor Boy" stories in comparison to the "Green Dragon" stories. I do agree they are slightly similar, but other than having the same characters and it being a high school fic, I don't see the big comparison. In the "Green Dragon" stories, Vegeta cheats on Bulma on purpose, not on accident like in the other story. Also, there are no excuse siblings, the drama is different, and much, much more! Heehee :P 


	16. Rain Cleanses All

Last time:  
  
"Bulma!" Vegeta snapped. "What the hell are you doing out here? You're going to get you and the baby sick!"  
  
"I love you!" she called back, the rain washing away her tears of sadness and joy. She couldn't have come up with a more perfect moment.  
  
ooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooo  
  
Mrs. Ouji stared at the clock, willing it to give her answers, demanding time to heal her wounds. For days her brain had been in an impenetrable fog. Nothing but random meaningless thoughts passed through…until now. The medication, only to be given to her by Vegeta, which he monitored with an iron fist, left her feeling so drowsy no feeling could get in. Now the dam had burst open. She knew what she'd done and she wanted to do it again, simply for the reason that she had put everyone, especially Vegeta, through so much pain. But she would never try something so selfish and irrational again. It was the moment that fueled her need for an escape, and now that she had time to think the situation over, she had overreacted completely.  
  
"I'm so sorry, Vegeta," she sighed, drawing her knees up to her chest.  
  
A flash of his face made her eyes well again. He was sitting beside her, in this very room, his head down. He didn't know she was awake. Clearly, he was thinking intensely about something, and, when he finally noticed she was awake, shrugged off his ill feelings to care for her.  
  
He was such a completely different person now, ever since he met Bulma. It was so much like her relationship with Vegeta's father that it made her want to burst out laughing. How happy and miserable they had been, just like Bulma and Vegeta. His father had been just like him in the beginning too; arrogant, rude, womanizing. But then she was able to find his heart and never let him forget it. Mr. Ouji's reasons for his attitude were father related as well, though Vegeta's grandfather is in jail for his involvement.  
  
Mrs. Ouji couldn't deny her anguish at seeing her son in such a similar relationship. Of course she was happy for him, but the similarities were just too much sometimes. On several occasions since Bulma entered the picture, she'd cried herself to sleep, desperately clinging to a picture of her husband. The mounting stress pushed her to her limits everyday. When she grabbed the bottle of pills, her limits had been breeched.  
  
"I'll make it up to you," she whispered and curled into a ball, the gentle sound of rain pulling her into a comforting dream.  
  
oooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooo  
  
Chi-Chi bolted upright in bed, her heart racing, her cheeks already stained with tears. Beside her, Goku slept soundly, a small smile on his face. She took a deep breath, trying her best to block out the images of her nightmare. When she couldn't, she climbed out of bed, went into the bathroom, and splash cold water on her face. Her reflection was ghost white and miserable looking. She smiled, despite the terrifying dream, but it was forced and made her look all the more sad.  
  
It had been so real; her could still smell the sterile hospital room she'd been rushed to. She'd woken in the middle of the night, just like right now, to find blood covering the front of her nightgown. She glanced down now, sighing with relief when there was no blood. Goku had been so hysterical that her father had had to drive them to the Emergency Room. The entire time she was in such agony; she squeezed Goku's hand so hard she swore she broke the bones. When they finally arrived at the hospital—and it seemed to have taken hours to get there—the doctors informed her before she was even a second in the door that she'd had a miscarriage. And then their faces shifted, turned to smoke, and they disappeared. A moment later she was back in her bed, crying at her imagination.  
  
"It was just a stupid nightmare," she told her reflection, glaring angrily at herself for still being so scared. She looked away finally, unable to stand her own face anymore. She was about to get back into bed, when little Gohan shifted, pressing almost painfully into her bladder. Slowly she sat down on the toilet, went, but as she was pulling her underwear back on, she noticed something that made her scream out as if in pain.  
  
Blood.  
  
Goku was in the bathroom within second, cradling her, demanding to know what happened with soothing words. When he saw the blood he too let out a horrified yell, but found his composure. He needed to be strong for her if she couldn't be for herself.  
  
He scooped her into his arms, ran as quickly as he could down the stairs, woke her father, and demanded he call 911.  
  
Chi-Chi had long since fainted; Goku was free to cry. The ambulance would be there shortly.  
  
oooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooo  
  
"Come inside," Vegeta said, stepping out into the rain. He could barely see her from the porch, but as he approached her features came into focus. He couldn't remember her looking more beautiful.  
  
"I love you, Vegeta," she said, smiling wide. He had seen that smile so many times before, so many times he had made her smile that way, and it didn't mean so much as it did now. "I love you," she said again, her voice softer.  
  
Vegeta controlled his emotions expertly, until her arms latched around his neck, her lips contacting with his. It was a desperate kiss, a kiss with the most extreme and sudden need behind it that it made his head spin. He wrapped his arms around her as best as he could, deepening the kiss. The rain splashed on their faces, seeped into their mouths; they didn't care. This moment was there's, no matter how the weather felt about it.  
  
"What does this mean?" Vegeta whispered, his forehead pressed to hers, his breathing slightly labored. He couldn't begin to describe what he was feeling right now.  
  
"I don't want to pretend anymore."  
  
He pulled his head back and gave her a confused look.  
  
"It means that if you screw up again I'll castrate you," she laughed, pulling his head back to her again. Vegeta stepped back this time, releasing her, the corners of his mouth at war for which emotion to display. In the end confusion reined.  
  
"You mean—"  
  
"Yes Vegeta," she whispered. "Yes."  
  
This time a smile, wider than Bulma's, graced his lips and he pulled her into his arms. He could have kissed her for hours, if she didn't lean back.  
  
"What?"  
  
"I want to know something," she said, her manner serious.  
  
"Anything."  
  
"That day at the hospital, I told you that I would do anything to make you feel better. I was so sure that what you would have wanted was for me to take you back."  
  
"It was," he admitted.  
  
"Why didn't you say it?"  
  
"I wanted you to want to. Tragedy is not something I wanted to make that happen. If you had offered to that day I wouldn't have let you."  
  
"You have such a big heart," Bulma laughed, giving him a kiss on the nose. "I told you I'd make you a better person."  
  
"Not the best," he said, a vicious grin on his lips. Now everything seemed so natural, so perfect. Just days ago they were both anxious all the time when in the presence of the other. Their minds had been filled with doubt and uncertainty. Should I talk? Should I leave? I don't know what to do! But it was all worth it for this seemingly impossible moment. "But that's for another night," he sighed.  
  
"Can I stay here? I want to be near you tonight."  
  
"You think I was going to let you leave?" He slung his arm around her shoulder and led her towards the house. "Sorry woman, you're stuck with me…forever."  
  
Bulma froze in her tracks.  
  
"What?"  
  
"Forever," she whispered, a small smile on her lips.  
  
"Is there a problem with that?"  
  
"No…No. Not at all."  
  
They walked into Vegeta's house, arm in arm, their hearts finally free to love each other completely. It was too surreal to be true.  
  
Soon enough, they were settled in Vegeta's room, after he went in to check on his mother, alone. Bulma curled into his chest, the salty scent of his skin intoxicating. If she hadn't been so happy, she would have fallen asleep.  
  
"I told you you would wear pigtails for me one day," Vegeta laughed softly, giving her a soft kiss on the forehead.  
  
"And everyone told you that you would fall for me…Things just work out for the best sometimes."  
  
Vegeta was about to comment, when he felt a strange sensation, something completely alien, yet familiar. He looked at Bulma, then down at her belly that semi-separated them.  
  
"Was that—"  
  
"Yes," she sighed happily. "He's tough, just like his dad."  
  
Vegeta's face suddenly went solemn, is brow knitted, lips frowning. Bulma swallowed a hard lump, forcing herself to not think the worst. When he didn't say anything, she nudged him slightly with her nose on his cheek.  
  
"I don't understand how you can forgive me," he said, as if on cue. "It doesn't make sense. I hurt you so badly, and intentionally, and I continued to hurt you with no remorse, but still you're here in this bed with me instead of being at home hating me like you have every right to and should," he said almost angrily. "…I deserve the worst you can give me."  
  
"Oh Vegeta," she laughed, her worry completely lifted. "It's things like that that prove all the more that I made the right decision in forgiving you. You didn't feel remorse then, but you sure as hell do now. You just needed time to find your true self. It was hidden for so long under hatred and sorrow that it took a lot longer than I would prefer for it to come out. But now that you're here, now that I can see the true you before me, I know I can never be hurt like that again. This is forever Vegeta, and there's nothing I'm afraid of anymore. Not even raising Trunks, because I know that you'll be there for me one hundred percent. You may not have wanted him, but he's here, and I know you'll love him."  
  
"I want him now," he admitted, placing a gentle hand on her belly, smiling slightly when he felt another kick. "I want a family with you, and I don't care who knows it. I'll go to the papers first thing in the morning and tell them about us. You're the most important thing to me, Bulma. Any person that tries to stand in our way will pay dearly."  
  
"No one will dare," she said, giving him a kiss on the nose. "They know what we have. Besides, I don't think anyone is stupid enough to challenge you. You'd crush them in a nanosecond."  
  
"Does this mean we're getting married?" he asked, surprising her, and himself; the thought didn't scare him the way it always had before. With one girl forever? It was the plague a year ago. Now it seemed the only logical thing to do.  
  
"Do you want to get married? I'm in no rush. I have college and the company and this project that's—"  
  
Vegeta silenced her with a passionate kiss, his fingers finding their way into her silky locks.  
  
"Yes then?"  
  
"Would you expect anything but the most extreme from me?" he laughed, giving way to kissing her again. Every kind of kiss imaginable. It'd been so long since he could freely kiss her, feel those amazingly smooth lips against his, that small smile that she couldn't help no matter how intense the moment became. And when he ran out of different ways to kiss her, he started all over again, until he was kissing her neck and shoulders and belly. He gradually removed all her clothes, and his, and kissed every inch of her body, relishing in the absolute pleasure of simply being this close to her without fear of rejection or argument.  
  
And there was nothing sexual in the way he kissed her body. He was enjoying his new freedom, taking complete advantage of it.  
  
When his lips went dry, he pulled her as close as possible, forcing himself to stay awake through the night. There wasn't a moment he wanted to miss. He refused. After so long without her, he could do one night with no sleep.  
  
The sun was just beginning to crest, when the phone on Vegeta's bedside rang, startling Bulma awake. She frowned, upset to have fallen asleep.  
  
"What?" Vegeta grumbled, answering the phone. Even if he was awake, there was no reason for someone to call him THIS early. "What!?" His eyes grew wide. "Kami. Is she ok?…Where are you?…We'll meet you there."  
  
"What was that all about?" Bulma demanded, unable to mask her fear. It was Goku's voice she'd distinctly heard on the other line.  
  
"Chi-Chi's being rushed to the Emergency Room," he said quickly, frantically pulling on his pants. "Hurry up, get dressed. I need to check on my mother, and I'll meet you in the car. Don't ask questions, just go."  
  
Bulma swallowed hard and did as she was told, all the while praying that she and the baby were safe.  
  
oooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooo  
  
Bulma and Vegeta ran awkwardly into the hospital; one of his arms around her shoulders, the other under her belly. The receptionist did not help the situation, when she informed them that only family was allowed beyond the ER doors. Vegeta snapped a few choice curse words and turned his back on her, helping Bulma sit down.  
  
"Call Goku's cell phone," Bulma suggested, biting her nails nervously.  
  
"I'm not going to disturb them," he retorted, startling her.  
  
"I agree," came 18's solemn voice. They looked up to see her and Krillin. 17 and Maris were just walking in as well. Obviously they'd all been called. "Whatever happened, there's nothing we can do. We need to wait until one of them comes to see us."  
  
Bulma hung her head and nodded. Of course they were right.  
  
"I need some water," she said to herself, tried to stand, but was forced back down by Vegeta.  
  
"I'll get it," he said, almost angrily. Bulma sighed and shrugged.  
  
"Like it matters," she wanted to say, but kept quiet and let him do as he pleased.  
  
oooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooo  
  
"I'm fine, I promise," Chi-Chi said for what seemed like the hundredth time. But every still felt the need to crowd around her, each wanting a chance to see for themselves, though, of course, none of them were doctors.  
  
"What happened, again?" Krillin asked, holding her hand. He'd been so afraid for her, he was not going to let go yet.  
  
"It was a false alarm," she explained, unable to control the wide grin on her features. "It happens sometimes. There wasn't even enough blood that I'll have any side effects. I forget what the doctor called it, something really weird. But me and the baby are perfectly healthy, so—" She pulled her hand free from Krillin's grasp. "—you can all stop babying me," she laughed. She gave Krillin a quick kiss on the cheek before lying back on her pillows, which everyone had felt the need to fluff.  
  
"You really gave us a scare, Chi," Bulma sighed, the fear still coursing through her veins. Not only was her body still scared for her, but she was scared for herself. What if that happened to her? What if it wasn't a false alarm for her? What if she loses Trunks before she even sees him?  
  
She forced a convincing smile to keep anyone from asking questions.  
  
"I'm good, B. I swear." She smiled that way only she could, but then her eyes seemed to catch something that wasn't there before, something she would have noticed had everyone not been so hysterical. "Bulma, did something happen tonight?"  
  
"What'd you mean?" Bulma had no clue what she was talking about.  
  
"Vegeta," Chi-Chi said, turning to him. "What happened?"  
  
Vegeta looked up and smiled as much as he could, which wasn't much, but enough to tell Chi-Chi exactly what she wanted to know.  
  
"Good job, 'Get," she said, smiling brightly. "I knew you had it in you somewhere…How's your mom doing?"  
  
"Fine."  
  
"Good."  
  
"Umm, can I butt in?" Goku said, looking from his girlfriend to his best friend.  
  
"Sure honey," Chi-Chi laughed.  
  
"What's going on?"  
  
"Vegeta and Bulma finally made up. They're a couple again."  
  
Goku, along with everyone in the room, let out a loud gasp. There were a million and one questions flying around at once, until Vegeta made his voice heard, silencing everyone.  
  
"You missed something, woman," he said, his lips curling into a smirk. He looked to Bulma quickly before saying another word. She nodded slowly, unable to keep from smiling. "We're getting married."  
  
The room erupted with sound again, and Bulma and Vegeta couldn't help but laugh. They were finally together, finally happy…finally.  
  
ooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooo  
  
---Chapter 16! :) My guess is everyone liked this one, heehee. I think I did a very good job myself. I'm debating on if I want to make one last chapter, just to tie everything up, or just leave it as it is. I guess I'll let my awesome readers decide.  
  
REVIEW!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! (ReviewsMore ChaptersHappy Marci)  
  
Next time: ???? You decide! :P  
  
Note: Corrections later…Maybe…If I'm not too lazy :P  
  
HEY!!!: Don't forget to check out my newest fic "Origin of the Androids". It's really different for me, but hopefully it'll get as many reviews as my others. 


	17. Full Circle

Last time:

"You missed something, woman," he said, his lips curling into a smirk. He looked to Bulma quickly before saying another word. She nodded slowly, unable to keep from smiling. "We're getting married."

The room erupted with sound again, and Bulma and Vegeta couldn't help but laugh. They were finally together, finally happy…finally.

oooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooo

"You know," she said, wrapping her arms lovingly around his shoulders from behind, "I always knew."

"Knew what?" he sighed, shrugging her off.

"Vegeta Ouji," she half-yelled half-laughed. "You know exactly what I'm talking about. Did you really think information like this could get by me?"

"It was worth a try."

"You can't keep shutting me out." The sudden change in her tone caught his attention, but he didn't look at her. How could he? For so long he'd been shoving her away, sizing her up right in front of her, comparing her to other people and wishing, just for a moment, she were someone else. And now, the more he thought about it—though, of course, the thoughts would have lied dormant if not for outside persuasion—the more he wanted that gap to be filled in, somehow mended, and then their lives could move on.

As things stood now, no one was going anywhere.

"Give me time," he finally said in a low whisper, his head down, right foot already turning to leave.

"How's dinner sometime? Whenever you want."

He looked up into her soft chocolate eyes, unable to do anything but stare for a moment. And then, very slowly, he nodded and walked away.

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"I'm seriously going to slap you, Vegeta," Bulma sighed, her brow knitted in irritation, an almost invisible smile gracing her lips. His actions had been cute and welcomed and hour ago, but she didn't want to spend the rest of the night lying in silence. She'd fall asleep if that were the case. "Do I have to send you to the living room?"

Vegeta groaned and climbed out the bed, veering into the bathroom. Bulma smiled; he'd never willingly sleep away from her. When he came back out ten minutes later, he smelled like mint and shaving cream. She pressed her lips to his cheek once he was settled next to her; Kami she loved how that felt; warm and smooth and damp.

"You're a horrible person," he said when she pulled back and got comfortable.

"Don't start with me. We've been together a week and you're starting."

Vegeta's deep frown made her laugh.

"I understand that you haven't really had time with…er…my belly, but I think I deserve some of your time." His frown didn't lessen in the least. "Oh come on, Vegeta." She grabbed his face and forced him to look her in the eye. "Kiss me."

Demand or not, kissing Bulma was something he would never get tired of doing. And he realized, as her fingers raked into his hair, that this was it, finally, and he couldn't remember a time he'd been so happy. Truly happy. All his life, even when his father was alive, he'd always had that deep-seeded anger lurking inside him. Now he couldn't locate it, even if he wanted to. Having Bulma in his arms was the antidote for all the pain life had thrown at him, and, even if they fought, he knew that once her arms were around him, or her lips were pressed to his, the anger could never hold its ground for long.

But then another, equally troubling thought entered his mind. He'd hurt her, cheated on her, and rubbed it in her face. For months he'd repeatedly made her feel lower than dirt, but now he's allowed to have her back? It wasn't justice, not for her, not for the woman he now knew he loved and had even before he screwed up. He'd loved her then and his fear had pushed him to bring her pain, a pain he knew all too well, the pain of being hollow inside, cold through and through. His entire being had been enveloped in that pain from the moment his father died, and he'd brought that to her.

He didn't deserve her at all.

"You make me hate myself even more," he sighed, turning away.

"I wish I didn't, but I knew I would, and I'm sorry."

"You," he said, almost fiercely, "did NOTHING wrong. Never apologize to me. Never. Nothing you can do could ever match what I did."

"Oh Vegeta," Bulma sighed, pulling his head to rest on her shoulder. "You don't need to keep beating yourself up for this. I've forgiven you. You obviously regret what happened, and as far as I'm concerned, that's all that matters…That, and that you love me. I don't need you to change your entire personality just to please me. I love you just the way you are. I wouldn't have you any other way."

"I am different though," he said, more to himself than to her, as if just realizing it at that moment, though it had been the reason for their break-up in the first place. He was changing and he feared that more than anything at the moment; now his biggest fear was not being everything for Bulma. "But I don't feel different."

"You're sure acting different." She pulled her head back and looked at him, searching his eyes. "Are you ok, Vegeta?"

He glowered at her and sunk into the pillows, closing his eyes. He knew he should talk to her, tell her exactly what was on his mind, down to every last detail, but there was just too much. She was under so much stress already, stress he caused the moment he got into bed with her; he wouldn't cause anymore. He might tell her some day, but tonight he was just going to give her himself.

"Vegeta?"

He opened his eyes and looked over at her.

"Please tell me."

"I'm fine," he insisted, forcing a yawn. "Now come here. It's been hell sleeping without you."

Bulma sighed knowingly and obliged. Yes she had him, but getting him to open up completely was a whole different game. It would take time and energy, two things she didn't have enough of at the moment.

She kissed his closed eyelids tenderly and settled comfortably beside him.

"Tomorrow," she thought, just as sleep began to take her away. "Tomorrow he'll tell me…"

ooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooo

For months everything was calm; everything was quiet. Their lives were perfect.

And then it happened.

Bulma held Chi-Chi's hand tightly, holding them together with her other hand. Their breathing matched almost exactly; fast, sharp, heavy. Neither were in any condition to go anywhere. They were completely alone…and scared out of their minds.

"It's coming," Chi-Chi gasped, her free arm clenched around her belly, as if trying to keep the baby inside.

"It's about time," Bulma half-laughed, a small sweat breaking out on her forehead. "Almost two weeks late, Chi." She wanted so badly to be completely there for her friend, but, the truth was that she was feeling her worst today since getting pregnant. Her due date was in two weeks, but she swore the baby wanted out now.

"You're telling me," Chi-Chi laughed, her face tensing as a contraction came and went. "Where the hell is Goku!" she hissed, clenching her fist tighter. Bulma winced, but did nothing to lessen the pain.

"On a plane headed this way," Bulma said, trying her best to sound reassuring. Green Dragon had been in Kyoto on band business for the past month. Goku and Vegeta were, of course, ready to come home at a moment's notice should their fiancées go into labor. "He left the second I called."

"And a doctor! I'm not having this baby in your fucking living room!"

Bulma took a deep breath, reminding herself that her friend was going through incomprehensible amounts of pain.

"I called my mom. She's on her way. Just hold on."

"Hold—"

"Your chauffer has arrived!" came Mrs. Briefs' cheery voice. Neither girl had heard her pull up or the door open.

Five minutes later the three women were in a speeding car, headed towards the nearest hospital. Mrs. Briefs ran as many red lights as Chi-Chi's heart rate could handle, and, in a matter of ten minutes, they skidded into the hospital parking lot.

"I'm not having this baby without Goku!" Chi-Chi snapped, clinging to Bulma's arm with her vice-like grip. Expertly, Mrs. Briefs detached the girls, eased Chi-Chi into a wheelchair, and pushed her to the receptionist's desk.

"Hello. This is Chi-Chi Mau. And she's ready to have her baby."

The receptionist eyed the three women almost suspiciously, then handed Mrs. Briefs a clipboard with forms that needed to be filled out.

"Are you her mother?"

"No, no. Her father will be here shortly, if traffic isn't too bad."

"And the father of the child?" She didn't even try to mask her disgust.

"On his way as well."

"I see…Fill those out. A doctor will be with you shortly…"

Chi-Chi was halfway out of her seat, ready to pounce on the nasty receptionist, when the Ox King came charging in, wrapping his large, warm arms around his tiny daughter. Bulma let out a deep breath and took a seat on a couch near the receptionist's desk. Hopefully things would go better now.

oooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooo

Goku kissed Chi-Chi's face over so many times Bulma swore he was trying to clean it. Two minutes ago he'd come running in, just as they'd eased Chi-Chi up on a stretcher, ready to wheel her into the delivery room. He was in such a hurry he didn't see anyone else in the lounge.

As soon as they were gone through the double doors, everyone let out a simultaneous sigh. Finally she could have her baby.

Bulma took one last look at the doors Chi-Chi had just gone through, then turned to take a breather while she waited. It was so quick, so absolute, that no one could have predicted it. She stared down at the liquid mess at her feet, her fingers trembling as she brought them to her lips. Her eyelids turned to lead, her mind completely blank, as her body fell backwards.

"Kami, woman," snapped a scared, yet slightly angry voice in her ear. "What's your problem?"

Vegeta set her gently in a chair, kneeling before her as she came to.

"My-My-My…" Fat tears rolled down her cheeks, connecting under her chin, before dropping off onto her chest. "Vegeta, I'm having the baby…now."

"Woman, what're you talking about? You're not due for another week. Kakarot's woman is having her baby."

"Vegeta!" She pointed angrily at the floor, a puddle of water her only evidence. "My fucking water just broke! And what the hell are you doing home!"

"You think I don't know you?" he sighed, easing into the chair next to her. "When Chi-Chi had her baby I knew you'd get emotional because you like being pregnant and don't want to have the baby yet…It's a good thing I came." He looked up, caught the receptionist's eye, and shouted, "Baby!"

"Aren't you scared?" she whispered, hugging her swollen belly.

"Not more in my life," he said monotone, placing a warm hand on top of hers. "Are you going to be alright for a minute? My mother would murder me if I didn't call her."

Bulma only smiled and nodded. She had a good while before the contractions actually started. Her last moments of peace. Her last moments being pregnant. And then she was a mother.

oooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooo

After an hour of arguing, many threats, and much persuasion, Bulma grinned wide as she was wheeled into Chi-Chi's room and placed in a bed next to hers. Moments later Goku and Vegeta arrived, each going to their respective fiancées, whimpering baby boys tucked comfortably in their arms.

"Kami!" Bulma cried, as the light purple haired baby was lowered into her arms, her husband-to-be taking a seat beside her, having never looked happier in his entire life. "A mother. I'm a mother! A mother!"

"I think I know what you mean," Chi-Chi laughed, her beaming black haired baby asleep in her arms. "And I had to do it first. Gohan is a full hour and a half older than Trunks."

"I still can't believe they have the same birthday," Krillin commented, stepping up in between the two beds. "Two weeks late and two weeks early. It's crazy. Like you guys planned it…You didn't—"

"Krillin!" the girls yelled in unison, and 18 pulled him into a headlock, giving him a good hard noogie.

"I guess all that's left are the weddings," 17 said, his eyes instinctively going to Maris, and then Krillin, who smiled secretly at him. Several weeks back he'd purchased an engagement ring, asking Krillin to come along to help, seeing as he'd known Maris longer. He would have asked Bulma or Chi-Chi, but, honestly, he didn't trust their bond and thought they might excitedly let the information slip. So, figuring that he should get to know his sister's boyfriend better, he called Krillin. He not only agreed, but announced that he'd been planning on buying a ring himself, even had one picked out.

Now all that was left was for them to pop the question.

ooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooo

The cool wind swept through the small crowd, refreshing and soothing them. The heat of mid-afternoon had begun to take its toll on many of them, even causing a few people to faint. But, now that the sun was beginning to leave, and the air was turning cool, the mild complaining stopped and they were able to enjoy themselves much better.

In a breezy stonewalled room, Bulma sat with her hands in her lap, the faint smell of jasmine and lavender in the air. She couldn't remember a time she'd been this tense. Even when presenting a new project to the Capsule Corp. Board she wasn't this anxious.

She glanced in the mirror, making sure her make-up wasn't smeared by her nervous sweating. As her eyes drifted back to her lap, her ears perked at the sound of the door opening. She looked up and smiled. It was her girls, Gohan cradled in Chi-Chi's arms and Trunks in Maris's. 18 held a small box.

"I was wondering when you guys would show," Bulma laughed, trying desperately to mask her apprehension. Maris walked over and set Trunks in her awaiting arms, then leaned in and gave her friend a gentle kiss on the cheek.

"You look amazing," she said, stepping back.

"What's the box for?" she asked, blushing slightly at the compliment.

"A contribution gift," 18 said, handing it to Bulma and pulling off the bow so she didn't have to adjust Trunks to do it. Bulma looked down into the box, then back to 18, a wrinkle of confusion in her brow.

"What—"

"It's a song. We've been writing it for months. It was Vegeta's idea."

Bulma touched the unimportant-looking pieces of paper in the ordinary box, feeling the weight of the day beginning to press on her. A single tear cascaded down her cheek, splashing on the first page of the song.

"When can I hear it?" she whispered, looking up and wiping her eyes.

"Today. We're going to play it for you."

"Here," Chi-Chi said, reaching into her blue silk purse, matching her dress perfectly. She pulled out a small package of travel tissues, setting them on Bulma's vanity table. "You'll need these. Me and Mar' did."

Bulma could only smile at the gesture, and lifted Trunks, giving him a loving kiss on the forehead.

"I'm so happy he could be here for this," she said offhandedly, just as the door opened again.

"Baby pick-up," Mrs. Briefs said, her face beaming with pride. She scooped Trunks into her arms, but not until giving her daughter one last hug and kiss. Mr. Mau stood in the doorway, little Gohan already in his arms, that same goofy grin on his face as always. Bulma wasn't his daughter of course, but she was close enough, and he was proud all the same. "I love you, sweety."

"I love you too mom."

And, just as quickly, she was alone again, and no less tense.

Would this day ever end?

oooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooo

"Nervous, honey?" Dr. Briefs whispered, as Bulma hooked her arm through his.

"Come on dad," she laughed, lifting her head just a little higher. "Am I ever?"

"Petrified?"

"Never more in my life."

"I know you won't regret this, honey."

"I know, I know. But—"

"But still, I know. It happens to us all."

A gentle stream of music issued from an organ several yards away. Bulma's entire form tensed and she looked to her father, as if he would have all the answers.

"Ready?"

She took a deep breath, straightened her shoulders, then nodded. As the music picked up a little, Bulma and her father exited the grand white tent, all eyes on them and only them. For fifteen seconds the world slowed to a snails' pace. Each step Bulma took was small, but it represented so much more; her life, her future.

And then suddenly they were at the altar. Dr. Briefs kissed his daughter lovingly on the cheek and stepped to the side.

As they planned their wedding, Bulma and Vegeta had decided that neither could see the other before the ceremony. They also decided—and it was entirely Vegeta's idea—that they write their own vows.

When Bulma finally looked up at her fiancé she couldn't remember a time he'd looked more gorgeous, his slightly softened features accentuated by the stiffly pressed tux. He stepped towards her, slowly lifting her veil. It was considerably difficult for them both to not kiss each other.

Bulma could hardly hear the minister as he read from his bible only a foot in front of her. Her eyes were fixed on Vegeta, her heart pounding so hard it felt as though she'd just run for miles.

"I have been informed that you are reading your own vows," the minister said, turning to Bulma. She nodded, taking a lace-printed piece of paper from Chi-Chi who stood just behind her.

"Vegeta," she said, not taking her eyes off of him for a moment. "I don't know exactly when it was that I knew I loved you. The feeling came out of nowhere and I clung to it with a woman's ferocity." A small chuckle issued through the crowd. "And although our relationship didn't start perfect and isn't now and never will be, I know that being with you for the rest of my life is the only thing for me. Without you I'm not Bulma. I love you, Vegeta."

In the front row, Mrs. Briefs muffled her sobbing with her fancy handkerchief.

Now it was Vegeta's turn. He took his plain piece of paper from Goku and cleared his throat.

"Bulma," he said, his voice gruff and slightly shaky. "I haven't always been the best thing for you. In fact, I've been a downright pain." Again the wedding guests felt it was appropriate to laugh. "You were the only person who saw good in me and you helped me see that myself, through tears and pain and anger. I made rash decisions out of fear and confusion. I had never felt something so strong for another person before, and so I ran from it. I ran as far from it as I could, but you," he laughed almost sorrowfully, "you chased after me, and you caught me, and when I had you in my arms again I understood what I had been running from. You should have slapped me, but instead you kissed me and I knew that nothing in this world could ever keep me from you again. You are everything to me and, if you'll let me, I want to be everything I can for you…Bulma, I've lived my life too long without you. I love you."

For the longest second in history there was a perfect silence. And then the minister said, "Bulma, do you take Vegeta Ouji as your lawfully wedded husband?"

"I do," she whispered, her eyes welling with the sweetest of tears. "I do." And she slipped the ring on his finger.

"And do you, Vegeta, take Bulma Briefs as your lawfully wedded wife?"

"I do," he said without the slightly hesitation, slipping the ring on her finger.

"Then by the power given me, I pronounce you husband and wife. You may ki—"

But they were one step ahead of him, their arms tangled around one another, their lips locked in the most passionate and memorable kiss to date.

"Woo!" 18 yelled from behind her, pumping her fist in the air. "You did it, B! You're married!"

"You bet I am!" Bulma beamed back as Vegeta scooped her into his arms and ran passed the minister. "This is the beginning of the rest of our lives," she said into her husband's ear.

Vegeta's smirk was the last thing she saw as they were submerged under the water of the crystal-clear pond in the oasis. A roaring cheer came from the crowd that could be heard even under water, and when the couple finally resurfaced, half the wedding party was in the pond as well.

"So," Vegeta said, kissing his wife's wet lips. "What did you think?"

"I think you're a genius," she laughed and splashed him ferociously. "Married in Egypt! I love you!"

He pounced on her, wrapped her up tight in his arms. Their clothes didn't matter; the tux was generic and Bulma had two wedding dresses; it was only when Vegeta carried her off and they plummeted into the pond that everyone finally knew why.

"Did I answer your questions good enough?"

Bulma raised a questioning eyebrow.

"In my vows," he said, rolling his eyes at her slowness.

"You are perfect," she whispered into his lips.

"And you are all I ever wanted. I love you Bulma Ouji…"

ooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooo

-THE END!

Well, I hope I didn't leave any loose ends. And I hope I didn't disappoint anyone. I know it took me FOREVER to finish this, but I've been unbelievably busy with schoolwork and such and I've hardly had any time.

PLEASE REVIEW:)

Oh! And what did you think of them getting married in Egypt? And then jumping into the oasis they visited in the last fic? I thought that was mighty clever :P


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